The Unknown Potter
by Moony3003
Summary: Rachel meets her twin brother after many years apart, what will happen? Rated M for later chapters, may be a little swearing.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Harry Potter characters are not mine, just Rachel.

**Author's Note: **Starts just before Rachel and Harry's 6th year at Hogwarts. Sirius is alive in this story.

* * *

**The Unknown Potter**

Chapter One

As Rachel sat on a train to London from the airport, she looked at the man who sat opposite her. He was tall, thin with silver hair and beard. It was Albus Dumbledore. Rachel had wondered why Remus didn't pick her up himself but then again it didn't really matter.

Rachel smiled. She liked being back around people like herself. Rachel had been surrounded by people like herself before but she was in France, and France wasn't her home country. Rachel attended the wizarding school Beauxbatons. She liked it there, it was a big, lavish place but it still was never considered home.

As the train stopped in London Dumbledore and Rachel got off the train. Rachel looked around, now she felt like she was home. England was her home country; she hadn't been here since she was young;p though.

Rachel followed Dumbledore to a small, run-down looking pub. Rachel looked at the sign, The Leaky Cauldron. They entered and Rachel still followed Dumbledore, she hoped he knew where he was going. The pub was cramped and the air was clouded and misty.

Dumbledore led Rachel to the back door. They then entered an extremely small stoned courtyard which had a large three way brick wall around the area. Dumbledore looked at the brick wall curiously while Rachel looked at Dumbledore curiously.

Dumbledore then took out his wand and tapped the brick wall in a sort of sequence. The brick wall seemed to fold into each other, melt and disappear. They then walked through the newly opened area. 'This is Diagon Alley,' Dumbledore said, 'but I'm Remus had told you all about it.' Rachel nodded but didn't say anything.

Rachel looked out into the long street in wonder. It was packed with wizards and witches going on about a normal day, shopping and talking to people.

They did have something similar in France but it wasn't as packed. The one in France was more compact and didn't have the same variety of shops that this place did and while there Rachel couldn't afford to buy too much too often.

'First I think we should go to Madam Malkin's robes for all occasions,' Dumbledore said. Rachel just nodded again. Rachel followed Dumbledore to the shop. There were no other students inside. Not long after entering a short woman with curly silver hair walked in from the back room muttering to herself. She stopped in her tracks when he saw Dumbledore.

'Oh my goodness Dumbledore, what are you doing here?'

'I'm helping a new student find her way around to get her school things,' he replied politely.

Madam Malkin looked Rachel over and looked sceptic, 'She looks too old for a first year.'

Dumbledore chuckled politely. 'She is transferring from Beauxbatons and is entering into her sixth year.'

Madam Malkin nodded her understanding. She walked over to Rachel and began measuring her with a magical tape measure. 'OK, get up here dear,' she said kindly.

Rachel did as she was told and stood still on a small platform while being pinned and measured still.

When they left the shop they began walking to another one to buy Rachel a new cauldron and potion ingredients, Rachel started to wonder, where was all the money coming from? Rachel thought about asking but deep down she knew better than to ask.

They went to Flourish and Blotts last to get her school books, while Dumbledore went and got them for her, Rachel waited for him by the door. When he returned Dumbledore regarded her carefully. 'Remus tells me you already have an owl?'

Rachel nodded. 'Yes, I have a snowy owl.'

Dumbledore smiled more, he seemed amused. Rachel felt uncomfortable for a split second. She didn't understand.

They made their way out of the shop and walked back up the street. Rachel looked at the Quidditch shop as they passed. She loved Quidditch. She played on a house team at Beauxbatons. She played Chaser when she first started then in her last year she got to play Seeker for one of the teams. She loved it; she hoped she got to play while at Hogwarts.

'Now, I think we shall go see Remus,' Dumbledore announced.

Rachel felt her heart leap. It made her body feel numb but wonderful. She was excited.

They walked back towards the Leaky Cauldron and back onto the Muggle streets of London. She followed Dumbledore to a small backstreet where Dumbledore stopped and took out his wand and a small velvet purple pouch which he handed to Rachel. It was the same pouch he used to pay for this in Diagon Alley.

Rachel just stared at him. 'There is some more money inside. I took the liberty of accessing your vault at Gringotts before meeting you at the airport. I trust that is alright?'

Rachel nodded, shocked by the sudden information. 'Yeah, that's fine. I didn't know I had a vault here.'

Dumbledore nodded softly. 'Yes, your parents left it to you; they left one to Harry too which is located next to yours.'

Rachel smiled but said nothing. She felt tears sting the back of her eyes. She didn't know much about her parents. She only knew the things Remus had told her, which was never much. He has always been vague about his answers. Rachel shook her thoughts out of her head and placed the small pouch inside her black robes.

Dumbledore lifted his wand and waved it very slightly. Rachel jumped as a large three-decker purple bus appeared and immediately stopped in front of them. Rachel was amazed that the bus was still intact jumping into a small alleyway.

Dumbledore got on the bus and Rachel hesitantly followed. 'Grimmauld Place please,' he said politely to the driver. He turned to her and used his wand to bring her possessions on board. Rachel was very grateful since she couldn't use her own; she carefully walked to the middle of the bus and looked up.

She saw a large chandelier hanging from the top level. It was gold and shone throughout the bus. Rachel only just noticed that the bus had no seats. There were just beds beside curtained windows. There was a candle beside each bed illuminating the walls.

Rachel walked near the end of the bus where Dumbledore was sitting on a bed. She sat down next to him. She watched a young man who had given Dumbledore a ticket; he was still looking at the place they were sitting.

'Do you know who that was Ern?' the young man asked.

'Yeah, that was Dumbledore,' the driver replied, 'he's the headmaster at Hogwarts.'

Rachel plainly heard what was said. She turned her head and looked at Dumbledore who appeared nonchalant. He must have heard what was said. Rachel yelped as the bus groaned and a loud bang issued through the bus. She was flown backwards onto the bed. She got herself up and held tightly onto the beds wooden headboard.

She looked at Dumbledore again who was sitting there calmly as though he was sitting on something solid. The bus driver didn't seem to know how to drive very well though. Rachel watched as the bus swerved around cars on the road and up onto the pavement. Though the bus never hit anything, it seemed invisible.

The bus stopped after only ten minutes of travelling and the conductor announced that they had arrived at Grimmauld Place. Dumbledore smiled, stood up, charmed Rachel's trunk and possession and walked off the bus with Rachel following behind him.

They walked to the middle of the street and Dumbledore stopped and looked between houses eleven and thirteen. Rachel looked as well; she couldn't imagine what he was waiting for. Rachel jumped for the second time that day as the houses began to part and the number twelve was engraved into a black letterbox which popped up.

Dumbledore turned his body slightly and silently handed Rachel a piece of paper.

_The Order of the Phoenix can be found at number 12 Grimmauld Place._

Rachel frowned faintly as she read it again then gasped as the small paper burst in flames. Rachel dropped it and it disappeared. She looked back at the house. It had become clearer, more solid. 'What is…?'

'All in good time,' Dumbledore interrupted, 'besides, I'm sure Remus can fill you in.'

Rachel nodded. They walked up the concrete steps to the large black front door. Dumbledore tapped his wand next to the door handled and Rachel heard several metal clinks and clanks as though the door was unlocking itself.

When they entered a strong smell of damp and stale air hit Rachel instantly. The long hallway was dark, narrow and silent. Rachel started to wonder if anyone actually lived here. She followed Dumbledore into what appeared to be the living-room. There was only one person in the room, Remus.

Rachel's face lit up as she looked at him. He still looked the same, except his hair was slightly greyer and his face was a little more lined. Remus looked up at her. Rachel smiled more. Remus' robes were still shabby but his eyes were still the same kind ones that she remembered.

Remus stood up and placed the book in his hands on the sofa where he was just sitting. Rachel ran to him and hugged him tightly. She didn't ever feel like letting go. When he finally realised her, he kissed her on the cheek gently.

'How's my girl?' he whispered. His voice sounded rough and hoarse. Maybe he was a little nervous like she was.

'It's so great to see you,' Rachel said hurriedly.

They settled on the sofa and Dumbledore had excused himself saying he was needed at Hogwarts. Remus held Rachel's hand tightly. He couldn't remove the smile from his face. 'Are you alright?' he asked.

Rachel nodded. 'Yes I'm fine. I'm so happy to finally be here.'

There was an unusually long pause between them. It was the first time she had seen him in about five years. She took a shaky breath and looked at Remus. 'Is there anyone else here?'

Remus' eyes averted to the stairs for a moment before looking back at Rachel. 'The only other person here is Sirius. He's upstairs, I'm not sure what he's doing though. You'll meet the Order later on tonight.'

Rachel looked at Remus hopefully. 'What about Harry?' It was the question she had most wanted to ask.

'He isn't coming for another three days.'

Rachel's face fell slightly but then quickly changed it back to a smile. 'That's Ok, gives me more time to spend with you.'

'Let's have a cup of tea,' Remus said standing up.

Rachel followed him through a door at the other end of the room which led into the kitchen. The smell in this room wasn't much better than the living room and hallway. There stood a long rectangle table in the middle of kitchen. It didn't seem to leave much room for anything else. The cupboards all looked like they had seen better days and the only window in the kitchen were boarded up with an opaque black curtain.

'Do you know what happened to my luggage?' Rachel asked as she sat down at the table.

'Yeah, I think Dumbledore sent them upstairs,' Remus replied.

Rachel nodded and waited for Remus. When he joined her, he handed her a hot cup of tea. Rachel took a sip; it was just how she liked it, white with one sugar.

'Who owns this house?'

'Sirius does. It belonged to his parents. I know it smells stale but at least it's liveable.'

Remus stood up and went to another cupboard. He walked back over and placed a small plate of biscuits on the table. Rachel smiled. She took one and said her thanks.

'What's the Order of the Phoenix?'

'Dumbledore didn't tell you?'

Rachel shook her head. 'No, he said you'd be able to tell me.'

'It's a group which Dumbledore founded to fight Voldemort.'

Rachel's eyes widened. 'You say his name?'

'Some of the Order do, yes.'

Rachel took a small bite of her biscuit as she thought it over. She didn't think she would ever be able to say his name, even if he were dead. It sounded creepy to her; she could only imagine what it must be like for Harry.

Remus seemed hesitant to ask his next question. 'So, have there been any boyfriends that you haven't told me about?'

Rachel giggled. 'No, I told you I wouldn't date and I kept that promise.'

Remus seemed relieved. 'Does Harry date?'

'Yes.'

'Then why do you worry about me dating?'

'Well, I'm not Harry's guardian, I'm yours.'

Rachel smiled. She loved Remus. She should say it more often. He always looked out for her; he treated her like his own daughter.

'Are you dating anyone?'

Remus laughed, 'No, definitely not.'

'Why?'

'How many women do you know would go out with a werewolf?'

Rachel shrugged. 'I would.'

Remus chuckled again. 'Well, lucky you're my god-daughter and too young for me.'

Rachel giggled. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this happy

* * *

Later that night Rachel sat in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place with the Remus and the rest of the Order. Most people sat frozen in their seats with their eyes on Rachel. Remus cleared his throat and most eyes went to him.

'I would like everyone to meet Rachel Lily Potter, Harry's twin sister.'

The room went deathly silent and all eyes went back to Rachel. She began to feel uncomfortable with everyone's eyes on her. Remus continued.

'This is some of the people in the Order,' Remus pointed to a young girl with a heart shaped face and bright pink spiky hair, 'that is Nymphadora Tonks, who prefers to be called by her last name only.'

Rachel looked Tonks over, she was very pretty. 'Wotcher,' Tonks said smiling at Rachel.

Remus then pointed towards a man with ling grey hair who had a bright blue magical eye which was whizzing around in its socket. 'That is Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody,' Remus said. Rachel looked him over as well. She could just imagine how many times a magical eye could come in handy for and how useful it would be.

'That's Kingsley Shacklebolt over there,' Remus said next pointing to a tall, black wizard who was looking at her curiously. For some reason Rachel looked away from him quickly. 'That's Arthur Weasley over there,' Remus said next. Rachel looked over. He was tall with red hair, going slightly bald though.

Remus then pointed to the woman sitting next to Arthur. 'And this is Arthur's wife Molly and they have seven children,' he pointed to each as he went along the table, 'their eldest son Bill, and his girlfriend Fleur, Charlie, Fred, George, Ron and Ginny. They have another son, Percy, as well but he isn't here.'

Rachel looked at them again slower. Their red hair stood out against everyone else's. Rachel remembered Fleur when she was at school, when she was in her last year Rachel was in her fourth year. Remus then moved over a little and Rachel followed. He next pointed to a girl with brown bushy hair and light brown eyes. 'This is Hermione Granger, one of your brother's best friends.'

He then pointed to a pale man who had black unkempt hair. 'That is Sirius Black, though you may already know that.' Rachel nodded. She did know who Sirius was. She remember sitting in the dining hall at Beauxbatons reading the article in the Daily Prophet. They did have a different paper in France but it was in French so Rachel had the Daily Prophet specially delivered.

'Also this is Professor McGonagall, she'll be your Transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts and this is Professor Snape, he'll be your Potions teacher.'

Rachel didn't think Snape looked like a very nice teacher. His black eyes searched her green ones for a few moments before Remus spoke to her. 'Let's eat.'

Rachel took a seat next to Remus and Sirius. 'You look extraordinarily like Lily,' Moody said, his magical eye looking at Rachel. She looked up at him. She felt a little nervous under his stare.

'Except she has black hair,' Tonks piped up cheerfully. Rachel looked at Tonks again. Rachel wondered if she was always this happy.

'So what school did you go to before?' Bill asked.

'I went to Beauxbatons,' Rachel replied. She looked Bill over quickly. He had long red hair which was tied back into a ponytail and he had an earring with a fang on the end. Rachel thought he looked kind of cool.

''Ow did you like Beauxbatons?' Fleur asked in a soft voice, staring at Rachel with a vacant expression.

Rachel took a moment to think and swallowed her food before slowly saying, 'It was great...it's very big.'

Fleur smiled approvingly and went back to eating. Rachel looked up from her plate after a few minutes and looked at Charlie. He was already looking at her with a small smile on his face. Rachel tried her hardest not to blush.

She didn't think there was any point denying that Charlie was cute, well, handsome really. The flaming red hair, millions of freckles, light brown eyes, a tan-weather beaten look and not to mention musclier, Rachel really liked what she saw.

After a few moments Rachel felt Remus nudge her slightly, he appeared to have noticed her staring. Rachel cleared her throat. 'So, Charlie, what do you do?'

'I work in Romania at a dragon sanctuary.'

'Must keep you away?'

'Yeah, I don't get home very often, but I still love it.'

Rachel smiled. She didn't think she'd be able to ever work with anything as dangerous as a dragon. Rachel remembered reading about the Triwizard Tournament two years ago. She feared for Harry throughout the entire year. It scared her to think he could've died before she even got a chance to meet him.

Rachel felt another slight nudge into her side from Remus. She shook her head and cleared her throat again and looked back down at her plate.

After dinner Rachel went upstairs to have a shower and get ready for bed. She wanted to get an early night, she felt like she needed a good sleep. When she finished she looked into the bathroom mirror which was cracked and had grime in the corners.

When she was young she thought her reflection was startling. She never looked like she had pictured in her mind. Rachel knew that sounded silly but it was how she felt. Did she really look like her mother? She did have a photo of Lily and James but it was old and ripped in the corners. Rachel kept it on her at all times.

She studied her soft oval shaped face and stroked her long black hair; her almond shaped eyes were full of a startling green. The only thing Rachel didn't really like was that her skin was too pale for her liking. Rachel sighed and got changed quickly.

She went back to her bedroom and tidied up a bit before settling down. She found a favourite book in her trunk and pulled back the covers of her new bed. The quilt was black and all the sheets and pillowcases were white. The carpet was a dull, faded green and the windows were covered with a pale green curtain.

She made herself comfortable and began to read. Only after ten minutes Rachel heard a small knock at her bedroom door. 'Come in,' Rachel called.

The door opened slowly and she saw Remus poked his head around. He closed the door behind him gently and walked over to the bed and sat down next to Rachel.

Rachel noticed the look on Remus' face. 'Is everything alright?' she asked quietly.

'Are you sure you're not dating?'

Rachel sighed faintly; she closed her book and placed it on the bedside table. She looked at Remus, 'I thought you trusted me?'

'I do, I'm just making sure.'

Rachel shifted in the bed. 'Then why are you asking again?'

'You seem very interested in Charlie,' Remus commented.

'That doesn't mean I'm dating, I said I wasn't dating and I'm not, I never lied to you.'

Remus moved closer to Rachel and held her hand gently. 'I do trust you,' he repeated quietly, 'but if anything does happen you will tell me, right?'

'Of course I will.'

Remus relaxed and kissed Rachel on the cheek. 'Goodnight. We'll talk some more tomorrow.'

Rachel nodded, 'Night,' she said as she watched Remus leave the room. Rachel picked her book up from the bedside table and began to read again. When she finished the chapter she was reading she put her book away and turned the bedroom light off.

She got back into bed carefully and lay down gently. She loved how soft and comfortable the bed was. She smiled. In a few days she would finally meet her twin brother. It made her wonder if they were similar in personality like they were likely to be in appearance.

Rachel closed her eyes and smiled more, she couldn't remember the last time she felt this happy. Rachel only hoped that she wouldn't wake up to find that it was all a dream.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two 

Three nights later, after dinner Rachel sat in the kitchen at Grimmauld Place with Remus and some of the Order, waiting for Harry to arrive. Dumbledore was picking him up. When the front door opened they heard a few loud clunks on the floor in the hallway. Rachel felt Remus squeeze her hand.

After a few seconds Dumbledore came into the kitchen with Harry in tow. He stopped dead in his tracks when his eyes caught sight of Rachel, who had gasped slightly at seeing Harry. He looked just like all his pictures in the papers. Rachel and Remus both stood up and Dumbledore and Harry walked closer.

Remus spoke first. 'Harry, this may come as a shock but we need you to try and understand. This is Rachel; she's your twin sister.'

Harry opened as though going to say something but kept closing it again. Nothing would come out, he just continued to gap at Rachel.

'Everything will be explained,' Dumbledore said looking at Harry, 'but is there anything you want to say before we start?'

Harry shook his head silently; his face suddenly hardened and looked angry. He turned on his heel and stormed out of the kitchen. Rachel felt tears burn the back of her eyes; she made sure she held them back though.

Remus turned Rachel around and noticed the sad look in her eyes. He hugged her gently. 'It's Ok, he'll come around. Let's just be patient.'

When Harry returned to the kitchen, just over an hour had passed. The Order was still sitting in the kitchen. The room went silent when Harry walked in with Ron and Hermione at his sides, who had gone up to get him to come back down. Harry walked over and sat at the table opposite Rachel. Sirius sat beside him as Remus sat beside Rachel.

'Anything you want to ask?' Remus asked Harry.

Harry just shook his head.

Remus began the story. 'Well, to start with I'm Rachel's godfather. Lily and James asked me to be after you were both born. After your parents died I took Lisa to Australia and we lived there until Rachel was eleven. While in Australia she went to a Muggle primary school and I job a Muggle job during those hours. She received an owl from Beauxbatons so we went to France, taking a detour here first to get some money from Rachel's vault for her school things. I didn't stay in France with her though. I came back here and took another Muggle job. I rented an apartment for every summer holiday so she would have somewhere to go. The last three years though she hasn't come back during summer because Dumbledore and I feared for her safety, so she stayed with some friends. And now Rachel's here she'll transfer to Hogwarts.'

Harry stared at Remus the whole time he spoke. Even after he finished Harry said nothing.

Remus sighed a little. 'Harry, you must have questions.'

Harry nodded slowly. He avoided looking at Rachel.

'What happened when we were born?'

'Well, Lily and James didn't know they were having twins until the final month, only Dumbledore was told. When you were born Dumbledore told me that Lily wanted me to be Rachel's godfather and I eventually 

agreed. They were both over the moon when you were both born, they got the boy they wanted and Lily felt like she got a bonus, a beautiful little girl.'

Remus paused as Rachel stifled a sob. Rachel pulled herself together immediately and Remus continued.

'Dumbledore explained to Lily and James that it would be twice as risky to keep both of you. Don't get me wrong, they loved both of you but they kept Harry because it's what James wanted most. It tore Lily apart to hand her daughter over and say goodbye.'

Rachel took a shaky breath and Remus grasped her hand. Rachel felt awful to hear about how her mother felt.

'How did you support Rachel and yourself?'

'Lily and James left a vault of money to Rachel as well as you. Her fault is located next to yours at Gringotts. I took some money before we left for Australia but it didn't last long, that's why I took a Muggle job. And like I said I took some more money out to get her school things and get her to France and she took a little spending money with her.'

Rachel interjected, 'And I told you to take some money for yourself.'

Remus dismissed it. 'It was and _is_ your money.'

Rachel sighed but didn't say anything.

Silence fell in the kitchen until Harry found another question to ask. 'Why didn't people realise who Rachel was? We have the same surname?'

'When she went to Beauxbatons we changed her surname to Lupin, we told them they simply made a mistake and they seemed to have agreed. They didn't question it. We were lucky there.'

Harry then backtracked a little. 'Why was it twice as risky for mum and dad to keep both of us?'

'Because Voldemort was after your parents and their son, he had no knowledge of Rachel because the prophecy referred to a boy, and like I said before only Dumbledore and I knew about Rachel. It's a good thing Rachel wasn't there otherwise she would have been killed too. James went to fend Voldemort off and Lily protected you Harry, she wouldn't have been able to protect you both.'

'What about the prophecy?' Harry asked, still not understanding.

'The prophecy never concerned Rachel, because she's a girl. Voldemort wouldn't see a female as an equal; it was always going to be a boy.'

Harry nodded thinking. 'Why didn't Sirius know about Rachel?'

Remus looked at Sirius briefly before looking back at Harry. 'We were careful about Sirius not finding out. The thought was that the less people that knew the better, and apparently it worked. Also, I took Rachel when she was just over three months old. That's the main reason it hurt Lily, because she didn't get much time with her only daughter.'

'Why didn't she come back earlier?' Harry asked.

'Dumbledore and I agreed that she should be hidden for as long as possible and we would have preferred she stay hidden until the war was over but she insisted on being here. She didn't want to wait any longer to meet you Harry.'

Harry finally looked at Rachel, he looked unsure of what to say. 'You've always...known about me?'

Rachel nodded. 'Yes, Remus never lied to me about who I was.'

'Why aren't there any pictures of mum and dad with Rachel?' Harry asked his attention back on Remus.

'There were only two pictures taken. One was taken when she was a baby and the other was taken just before I took Rachel.'

Rachel reached into her pocket and pulled out an old photograph. Rachel was about three months old in the moving photo. Lily was holding her, and kissed her cheek a few times while smiling at the camera. And James stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head and smiled at the camera. Rachel slid the photo across the table to Harry.

He picked it up slowly and looked at it. After a few moments he handed it back. The photograph was old and faded and the corners were ripped. Rachel picked it back up from the table and placed it back into her pocket.

'But I thought they suspected you, about being the traitor amongst them,' Harry said frowning at Remus.

'Yes they did suspect me. It was mainly Lily's idea that I take Rachel. She wanted Rachel to be with someone who knew them and someone that would love her properly. James eventually agreed with Lily but Dumbledore did say they should change Rachel's name and put her with a foster family but Lily wouldn't hear of it. I'm grateful they still trusted me enough to take their daughter; I don't think Lily ever thought I would betray them and she was correct. I promised them I would always be there for her and always look out for her but I wasn't always there.'

Rachel nudged Remus gently. 'You kept your promise,' she said quietly.

Silence filled the kitchen again for a longer period of time.

'We're not identical twins, are we?'

Remus chuckled slightly. 'No, you're just twins.'

'Who's older?' Harry asked slowly.

'You are Harry, by seven minutes.'

It went quiet, many minutes passed with nothing being said. Eventually Harry stood up, 'I've heard enough for tonight.'

He walked out of the kitchen and his friends followed. Rachel took a deep breath. She was happy to finally meet her brother and for him to know about her. Rachel looked around the table. Some people gave her a small smile but when Rachel's eyes hit Snape she felt odd. He was looking at her with an extremely curious expression upon his face. It made Rachel feel a little uncomfortable.

Slowly Order members left the house and Rachel felt it was time for her to go to bed as well. Both Remus and Dumbledore stood up as Rachel did and they both approached her. 'I think you should come to Hogwarts a day early so you can settle in,' Dumbledore said in his pleasant tone.

Rachel nodded but it was Remus who spoke. 'I agree. I'll accompany her myself.'

Dumbledore seemed happy with that and said his goodbyes too. As Snape left Rachel couldn't help but noticed he watched her. Remus noticed also.

Later that night Rachel heard a small rapping at the bedroom door. Rachel tiptoed over to the door and peered outside. It was Hermione. She was smiling at her, she seemed friendly. Rachel opened the door and let Hermione inside. 'Just thought I'd come and get to know you,' Hermione said happily.

Rachel felt strange for some reason. She walked over to the bed and sat down and Hermione joined her. Rachel left the door open slightly ajar. Hermione sat on the bed more and looked around quickly before turning her attention back to Rachel.

'I think this is the last thing anyone expected to happen,' Hermione stated.

'I know,' Rachel agreed.

'I'm not complaining though, might be good to have a girl my age around.'

'But aren't there others at Hogwarts?'

Hermione laughed. 'Yeah of course, but I meant someone close.'

Rachel frowned. She didn't quite understand. Hermione smiled nervously. 'Doesn't matter, anyway, I think you might be in the same dormitory as me.'

'Why?' Seeing the almost hurt look on Hermione's face Rachel quickly added, 'I mean how do you know that?'

Hermione's face loosened. 'Well, there are usually five people to a dormitory and mine only has four. There's me of course, and there's also Parvati Patil, Lavender Brown and Belvina Moon.'

'Are they nice?'

Hermione nodded. 'Yeah, but don't ask Parvati or Lavender about Divination or Professor Trelawney, they'll talk your ear off. What subjects are you taking?' Hermione asked interested.

'I'm taking Defence Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Potions, Charms, Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, Ancient Runes, Arithmancy, History of Magic and Astronomy.'

Hermione nodded. Rachel couldn't tell if she looked impressed or annoyed. 'I'm taking the same subjects, except for Care of Magical Creatures.'

'Should be good then,' Rachel said quietly.

It went quiet between them for a moment. 'So, anything else at Hogwarts that should I be wary of?'

Hermione smiled slyly. 'Yeah, there are a few things.'

'Like what?'

Hermione smiled more. 'In the library be careful of Madam Pince, she's the librarian. She doesn't like students touching the books. Also watch out for Mrs. Norris, she's the caretaker's cat.'

'Mrs. Norris?'

Hermione giggled slightly. 'Yeah, she stalks the corridors but unless you don't get caught out at night you shouldn't have a problem with her or Filch, he's the caretaker,' Hermione paused, 'also, watch out for Professor Snape.'

Rachel frowned slightly. 'Why?'

'Well...he picks on Harry a lot in potions, mainly because of James-your dad and if he does it to you too just make sure you don't lose your temper too quick like your brother and Ron sometimes do.'

Rachel wondered if her parents were the reason Snape looked at her so curiously.

'We're also not allowed to go into the Forbidden Forest but I'm sure Dumbledore will tell you all that but it's hard to tell Harry and Ron though.'

'Why?'

'Well, mainly because we've been in there so many times.'

'Why?' Rachel asked again.

'Um...detentions, finding spiders, tricking teachers; you know, the usual.'

Rachel laughed. 'I think you'll have to fill me in.'

Hermione giggled again. Rachel regarded Hermione for a moment. She tilted her head faintly and blinked slowly. Hermione seemed intelligent, she was quite pretty though. Rachel loved how her brown eyes seemed to sparkle when talking about her friends.

'Did you read about the Triwizard Tournament in France?' Hermione asked unsurely.

Rachel nodded. 'The whole school talked about it often, mainly because Beauxbatons were involved. I hated getting up the next morning for fear of reading something bad about Harry. I wished I could have confided in someone but I'm glad it's over.'

Hermione smiled while Rachel talked. Rachel was sure that Hermione understood. Rachel decided to change the subject. 'So, how long until we go to Hogwarts?'

'Starts on September first, so still a couple of weeks,' Hermione remembered something, 'we're going to Diagon Alley soon to get our stuff, do you want to come?'

'I'd love to...but I already have my school things.'

Hermione just waved her hand slightly, dismissing it. 'Doesn't matter, you can still come. You could help us carry everything.'

They both chuckled as the bedroom door opened a little more and Remus poked his head around the door. 'It's almost midnight; you two should get some sleep.'

Hermione smiled slyly at Rachel and slid off the bed gracefully. 'Goodnight Rachel,' she said softly.

'Goodnight Hermione,' she returned.

'Goodnight Remus,' Hermione said as she past.

'Night, Miss Granger.'

Hermione left the room quietly, closing the door behind her. Remus walked over to Rachel and kissed her on the cheek. 'Goodnight,' he said tenderly.

'Goodnight Remus,' she said kissing him back, 'you know I'm too old for you to do this.'

'Never,' Remus scoffed, 'get some sleep.'

Rachel grinned as she watched Remus leave the room. She got changed quickly and got into bed. She rolled onto her side and got comfortable. After a few seconds she closed her eyes. She felt happy, she had Remus back and she's pretty much made a new friend.

* * *

Five days later as Rachel got ready for the day she wondered how long it would take for Harry to come around and talk to her properly. Harry seemed to avoid her at all times. The only person besides the adults that would talk to her was Hermione. She noticed that Ron also avoided her, and she thought it was mainly because he was her brother's friend.

Rachel had also noticed Ginny giving her hard and sometimes cold stares. Rachel wondered if she had done something wrong other than just being around. She also learned from Hermione that Fred and George loved playing jokes and tricks but they haven't done anything to Rachel yet. Maybe they were scared of Remus.

Rachel put on her dark blue jeans and matched it with a pale pink top; she placed on her shoes and quickly brushed her hair before hurrying downstairs into the kitchen. She found Remus, Sirius, Molly, Kingsley, Tonks and Moody talking to Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny. Rachel walked over slowly, not sure if she should interrupt or not.

Remus walked over to her, 'Are you sure you want to go to Diagon Alley again?'

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, I think it'd be good.'

Remus seemed like he wanted to argue but he let it go. 'Ok, just be careful.'

'Relax Remus,' said Kingsley low deep voice, 'I'll be accompanying them, they'll be fine.'

He nodded but he still didn't seem very comforted. 'Do you have money?' Remus asked so hopefully only Rachel would hear. Rachel nodded. 'Yes, I have money. Stop worrying so much.'

'I can't help it,' he said quietly, stroking her cheek gently.

Rachel couldn't help but smile. She moved forwards and hugged Remus and she felt him hug her back. When Remus realised her Rachel noticed that Harry was watching. He looked away and started talking to Ron again.

Rachel kissed Remus on the cheek then walked over to Hermione. 'How are we getting there?'

'Oh, we're driving to London and going through the Leaky Cauldron,' Hermione answered.

When they all eventually got outside the front door Rachel saw a black car sitting outside the house on the curb.

'Who's driving?' Ron asked out loud.

'I am,' Kingsley said, suddenly walking past all of them.

Ron and the others seemed shocked to hear that. 'You can drive?' Harry asked confused.

'Yes, I wouldn't be driving otherwise,' Kingsley said chuckling.

Hermione just sighed, rolled her eyes and walked towards the car with Rachel and Ginny by her side. When they all got into the car, Kingsley got into the driver's seat while Ron got into the front passenger seat. 

Hermione and Harry sat in the back in between Rachel and Ginny. Ginny sat on Hermione's side and Rachel sat on Harry's side.

Rachel couldn't help but notice how uncomfortable Harry looked. He avoided looking out of the window that Rachel was sitting next to. 'Might be uncomfortable back there, but the journey should only take about ten minutes,' Kingsley called.

When they reached London Kingsley parked the car and they all walked through the Leaky Cauldron. Rachel remembered when she came here with Dumbledore only days ago. When they walked through the now parted brick wall Rachel still felt like it took her breath away, she liked being here again.

'Where should we go first?' Hermione asked looking around at everyone.

Everyone in the group shrugged. No one seemed to want to make all the decisions. Somehow Rachel felt that Hermione would end up steering the group to where they needed to go. Hermione sighed loudly. 'Ok, I think we should go and get more ink and quills and stuff first. Get the small stuff done first and we can carry the heavy stuff later.'

Rachel wondered if Hermione was the only logical person in the group. She seemed to always been thinking about the best way to do something. The others seemed to just do anything at any time without thinking it through. Rachel shook herself inwardly. The last thing she need to do was analyse everyone around her, it wasn't always the best way to make friends.

'Let's go to Stationers first then,' Ginny piped up.

Hermione nodded her head in agreement and they all walked down the street. When they had nearly reached the end of the street they all began to walk into a small shop. The outside walls were dark blue but it was peeling and faded. The store sign had been painted in gold but was chipped and faded also.

The inside of the shop was small, the more Rachel moved in the shop the more she realised that it was more cramped than small. For a moment Rachel watched the others as they moved around with difficulty to get what they needed. Rachel decided to get everything quickly and wait outside the shop.

It didn't take long for her to find a long white quill that she liked. She decided to buy three of them; she thought the white ones were elegant looking.

'What about getting another colour?' Harry suggested as he walked behind her and stopped beside her. 'Don't like the white ones?' Rachel asked smiling a little. Harry shrugged. 'You might be bored at looking at the same colour.'

Rachel thought he might have a good point. Along with her three white ones, Rachel decided to get a black, blue and red quill. She purchased them along with some ink and left the shop to wait for the others. While she waited she counted the money inside her purple pouch, she still had enough for anything she wanted to buy.

Rachel watched as Harry walked around the shop, joking and laughing at things with Ron. It was the first time Harry had spoken to her about anything. Rachel thought it was a good idea to not push him, just to let him get used to it on his own.

Rachel put the pouch back into her pocket and looked around Diagon Alley. It was still busy. She loved how full of life it seemed. The last time she was here it had been busy too. It made her wonder if Diagon Alley was always busy.

After ten minutes the others finally came out of the shop. Rachel frowned and wondered what had happened inside. Ron looked angry and he had a black ink spot in his nose, his sister was trying to calm him down. Hermione was the first one out of the shop, she looked slightly angry as well. Rachel stood up just as Hermione grabbed her arm. 'Let's do the rest alone.'

Rachel looked back at the others but they weren't looking back. They just stood there in a small circle. Rachel shrugged to herself and followed Hermione. Harry approached Kingsley who followed all of them from a distance. 'Aren't you going with them?' he asked a little louder than he should have. An elderly woman stared wide-eyed as she passed.

'No, the protection was supposed to be for you Harry, I'm sure you knew that,' Kingsley said slowly.

'But what if something happens?'

'They won't go far Harry, and I'm sure two intelligent girls can handle themselves.'

Ginny snorted. 'How would you know if she's intelligent?'

When Harry looked at Ginny she just moved away slightly and pretended as though she never asked the question. Kingsley decided to interrupt. 'Like I said, they'll be fine. You're the one that needs protecting Harry.'

Harry sighed irritably but he didn't say anything. They all decided to move on.

Hermione dragged Rachel to Flourish and Blotts. Immediately Rachel noticed it was a book store. Rachel decided not to ask about what happened so soon. She followed Hermione around as she got all of her books, she didn't say anything but every few minutes she would huff or sigh angrily.

When Hermione finished she paid for her books and dragged Rachel outside to Florean Fortescue's Ice-Cream Parlour. They sat down and ordered two small ice-creams and coffee. Hermione set some of her books on the table and some on the ground.

After their ice-cream and coffee had arrived Hermione still hadn't said anything. 'Can I ask what happened?' Rachel asked hesitantly.

Hermione sighed again. 'You know how you waited outside?'

Rachel nodded.

'Well, Harry came over to me and asked if I'm friends with you and I said yes…and he wasn't happy about it.'

'Why?' Rachel asked frowning.

'He doesn't want us to be friends'

'Why?' Rachel asked again.

'He said because I'm already his friend. I told him he was being ridiculous and I left.'

Rachel felt like laughing when she remembered Ron but she thought it would be tactless. 'What happened to Ron then?'

Rachel thought she saw Hermione's mouth twitch. 'I spilled a little ink on him in my anger when I left. He was trying to get between me and Harry. Ginny got a little upset; she was surprised that Harry and I were fighting. We never really fight at all.'

Rachel looked at the table. She felt guilty. 'I never meant to come between you and Harry.'

Hermione waved a hand. 'You're not coming between anyone. Harry has to realise that I can be friends with who I want, it's not up to him and never will be.'

Rachel ate some of the ice-cream, she got a vanilla choc chip one, and it tasted delicious. Hermione only picked at her own vanilla raspberry ice-cream, she looked unhappy.

Rachel decided to think about it later and change the subject. 'So, what type of wand do you have?'

'It's vine and dragon heartstring, nine and a quarter inches. What about yours?'

'Mine's willow and dragon heartstring, ten inches.'

'Didn't James or Lily have a willow wand?'

Rachel nodded, 'Yeah, my mother's wand was made of willow.'

Hermione smiled. She finally looked happier. 'I can't believe I didn't notice you don't wear glasses.'

'No, I wear contact lenses. I've always felt like glasses make my face look big.'

Hermione giggled. 'Do you have a favourite subject?' Hermione asked. She looked much happier than before.

'Yeah, I love Arithmancy and Potions, I do like Ancient Runes but I usually find the homework annoying, how about you?'

Hermione shrugged as she thought. 'I like most of my subjects but I think Potions would be my least favourite and I suppose my absolute favourite would be Ancient Runes.'

Rachel and Hermione continued to talk about school as they ate their ice-creams and enjoyed their coffee. After they finished Hermione decided they should go to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions so Hermione could get some new robes for the school year.

'The robes at Beauxbatons are blue right?' Hermione asked as they walked to the shop.

Rachel nodded, 'Yeah. How come you need more robes?'

'My other ones are just a little short.'

Rachel followed Hermione into the little shop. Not long after a woman with silver curly hair walked out from a curtain. Rachel recognised her from when she was here before. The woman recognised Rachel too. 'What are you doing here?' she asked looking at Rachel.

Hermione then looked at Rachel too then back at Madam Malkin. 'I need some new robes.'

Madam Malkin clapped her hands together and smiled. 'Very well, let's go into the back and get you measured.

After they left the shop Rachel was carrying half of Hermione's books which were heavy. 'I think we should find the others now,' Hermione said quietly.

Rachel just nodded and they both walked towards the Leaky Cauldron where inside they found Harry, Ron, Ginny and Kingsley sitting at a table together. As they entered Kingsley got up from his seat and walked over to them. 'Everything alright?' he asked.

They both nodded.

'Well then, let's go back to headquarters.'

When they got back to the car Kingsley took out his wand and made the boot big enough to fit all of their things inside and they clambered back into the car. Nothing was said as they made the uncomfortable ten minute ride back.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

After the Diagon Alley incident, Rachel had spent most of her time with Remus. As they sat in the kitchen one evening after dinner Rachel realised she was going to miss this. She loved spending time with Remus at the end of the day when he was finally finished with Order business.

'I might not be able to write you while you're at school this time,' Remus said softly.

'Why?' Rachel asked. She felt a little sad at hearing that.

'Well, I have some work to do for the Order,' Remus said.

Rachel waited to see if Remus would expand on it but he didn't. 'What kind of work?'

'I'll be living amongst my equals,' Remus stated.

Rachel frowned. She hated when Remus spoke like that. 'You are amongst your equals,' Rachel said almost coldly.

Remus smiled sadly. 'Dumbledore wants me to try and talk to the werewolves.'

'But what if something happens?' Rachel asked now feeling worried.

'I promise I'll be fine. You just worry about your studies and I don't want to hear of stories about you with boys.'

'Remus!' Rachel exclaimed, 'I'm not a child.'

'I know you're not, but you're like my child.'

Hearing Remus say that almost made Rachel cry. She stood up from her seat and walked over to him quickly. Remus stood up just in time to receive a hug from Rachel. 'I love you,' Rachel said inaudibly.

Remus smiled and kissed the top of her head and stroked her hair gently. 'And I love you.'

'Now, you should get to bed. I'm taking you to Hogwarts tomorrow.'

Rachel nodded and kissed Remus goodnight. She walked up the stairs slowly. As she walked down the corridor to her bedroom she could hear raised voices from another room which Harry shared with Ron. Against her better judgement Rachel walked over to the door noiselessly and pressed her ear against it.

'Hermione, I know she's my sister because everybody keeps telling me and I'm sick of it. I don't want you to be friends with her, you have to choose,' said Harry loudly.

Rachel heard Hermione huff stridently. 'Harry this is stupid and you know it. You don't even realise how much you and Rachel have in common.'

Harry's voice went softer. 'Like what?'

'Did you know she has a snowy owl too?' Hermione asked.

'No…what's its name?'

'She named him Hero.'

Someone in the room snorted loudly and someone else giggled. 'What kind of name is that?' Ginny asked while giggling.

'The name's ancient Greek,' Hermione said shortly.

The bedroom went quiet. 'You're not really going to make me choose are you Harry?' Hermione asked after a few silent moments.

The room went silent again. Rachel wondered if Harry was thinking it over. 'Fine, but I don't want her hanging around with us.'

Rachel ran away from the door quickly and went back to her room and closed the door behind her. She leaned against the door and steadied her breathing. She couldn't understand what her brother had against her. Did he really hate her that much? Did he not want her around?

Rachel suddenly jumped as she heard a loud thud at the window, it was Hero. She walked to the window in a few paces and opened the window wide open. Hero flew inside and went to his cage. He seemed to be ignoring Rachel. Rachel walked to his cage and changed his food but when she went to change the water Hero moved quickly and bit her.

Rachel shouted out in pain. She looked at Hero; he turned around, ruffled his feathers and went back to ignoring her. 'What did I do to you?' Rachel asked angrily.

Rachel looked down at her hand and noticed it was bleeding. She left the room and went back downstairs. When she entered the kitchen she noticed Remus and Sirius having a heated talk with Snape. All three men stopped their conversation and looked at Rachel as she entered the room. Sirius seemed to be panting.

'Rachel,' Remus said, breathing a little heavily, 'What's wrong?'

'Nothing, I was just wondering if you could heal my hand.'

Remus walked over and took her right hand into both of his. 'What happened?' he asked frowning.

'Hero bit me.'

'Who's Hero?' Sirius asked walking over a little.

'He's my owl. I think he's angry with me, so he bit me,' Rachel replied looking at Sirius.

Slowly her eyes wondered over to Snape whose black eyes were already fastened onto hers. Rachel desperately wanted to know why he stared at her like he did. She wondered if it had something to do with her parents. Remus told her they went to school together but he never told her any details.

After a few moments Rachel felt Remus pulled on her hand. Rachel took her eyes from Snape and looked at Remus and saw him frowning at her slightly. He finished examining her hand and now took out his wand. He tapped it onto her arm gently twice and the bit healed.

Remus let go of her and Rachel rubbed her hand, it felt normal. 'Thanks,' she said looking at Remus. She said her goodnights again and went back to her room. As Rachel walked back up the stairs she wondered what Remus and Sirius could have been arguing about with Snape.

* * *

The next day before Rachel set off to Hogwarts she sat in the living-room with Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny. Her trunk and possession were sitting on the floor beside her legs ready to go. The silence in the room was awkward and deafening.

'So, how did you learn at Beauxbatons?' Hermione asked breaking the silence.

'What do you mean?' Rachel asked back not understanding.

'Don't they speak French there?'

Now she understood what Hermione meant. 'Yeah they do but most of them also speak English. The classes are taught in French but it gets magically translated for me, it wasn't difficult for them to do so it worked out.'

'What house do you think you'll be in?' Harry asked.

Rachel felt startled. Hermione, Ron and Ginny looked at Harry then at Rachel quickly. 'I'm not sure, I don't even know what houses there are at Hogwarts.'

'There's Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin,' said Harry slowly, not taking his eyes off Rachel's. Rachel thought about it, she couldn't decide what house she would be in. She wondered what the difference was between them.

'What do the houses represent?' Rachel asked looking around at the other people in the room.

It was Hermione who answered her, 'Well the sorting hat decides where people go, Gryffindor is for the brave and daring, Ravenclaw is for the intelligent and ready minded, Hufflepuff is for those who are just and loyal and Slytherin are supposed to be cunning and ambitious.'

Rachel thought it over in her head. It sounded like Hermione read it out of a textbook. If Rachel was completely honest she wasn't sure she wanted to be in Hufflepuff, it sounded a little boring. Slytherin sounded interesting but she didn't consider herself to be cunning or ambitious. Rachel hoped she would go to either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw, even though she didn't consider herself brave either.

'What houses are you all in?' Rachel asked.

'We're all in Gryffindor,' said Hermione, 'I'm sure you will be too.'

Rachel smiled at her but she said nothing. She wondered what Remus was doing that was taking so long. She shifted on the sofa a little but no one else moved.

'Why did you name your owl Hero?' Ron asked suddenly.

It was the first thing Ron had ever said to Rachel. She immediately wondered if he was making fun of her owl's name. 'Hero is an ancient Greek name. I found it in a textbook at Beauxbatons, and I liked it.'

Ron nodded and went back to staring at nothing. The kitchen door opened and Remus walked in. 'Are you ready?' he asked.

Rachel nodded and stood up. 'Yeah I am. How are we getting there?'

'It'll be quicker if we go by Floo Powder. Dumbledore's opened the channel to his office, his expecting us shortly.'

Remus walked over to Rachel and picked up her things and took them into the kitchen. Rachel got up and walked over to the door too. She stopped and turned around. She looked around at the others and her eyes remained on Harry. 'I'll see you guys tomorrow.'

They all muttered and nodded as she left the room. Rachel found Remus standing by the fireplace waiting for her. 'Everything alright?' he asked, looking at her.

Rachel just nodded. Remus picked up a small pot, 'You go first and I'll follow with your things.' Rachel nodded and took a handful of the powder. She stepped into the fireplace and concentrated on the place she had to go. 'Hogwarts,' she said firmly, throwing the powder to the ground.

Remus watched as the powder fell to the ground and rose up in a flash of green fire, engulfing Rachel within them. When Rachel arrived in the next fireplace, she waited for the green flames to die before stepping out. She moved further into the office. There was no one else in the room. Rachel looked back at the fireplace as it began to sizzle and turn green again.

Remus came out of the fireplace with her things. He placed them onto the ground and walked over to Rachel. 'I'm fine,' Rachel said before Remus could ask anything. She already knew that he was going to ask. Remus smiled faintly.

Rachel moved further into the room and looked around slowly. The room was circular and the ceiling was high above them, it was beautiful. When the room had finally gone silent Rachel could hear many little noises filling the room. She inspected the room closer and noticed many silver objects sitting on spindle-legged tables; some were humming and emitting little puffs of smoke. Rachel wondered for a moment where the smoke went, it seemed to disappear instantly.

Rachel lifted her head noticed the walls were covered in portraits of witches and wizards, most of them were moving around in their frames trying to see what was happening. Rachel wondered if it was ever boring just sitting in a frame all day.

'They're the previous headmasters and headmistress,' Remus said watching her.

Rachel nodded her head, to indicate that she heard him, as she continued to look at them. She looked forwards after a while and noticed an enormous wooden desk and a large throne-like chair sitting behind it. Rachel looked beyond the desk and noticed an old wizard's hat sitting on a shelf. Rachel frowned a little as she looked at it, was it there for a reason? Why would someone keep an old hat?

After a while Dumbledore had still not come to see them. Rachel looked at Remus but he said nothing, he continued to wait patiently. Rachel moved closer to the window and saw a golden perch. 'What's this for?' Rachel asked.

'It's for Fawkes,' replied Remus quietly.

'Who's Fawkes?' Rachel asked.

'It's Dumbledore's pet Phoenix.'

'Really? A Phoenix?' Rachel said impressed, 'I've heard they're hard to tame.'

'Indeed they are,' said a voice at the top of the stairs. Rachel looked up and saw Dumbledore walking down the circular stairs slowly. He was wearing robes which were a shade of grey and purple, and his long silver hair was pulled back behind his head. Rachel loved how he wore bright and often unique robes.

'Fawkes and I have always been friends. We took to each other quickly,' Dumbledore said, reminiscing. 'I'm not quite sure where he is now though, probably looking for friends,' Dumbledore said chuckling slightly.

Rachel wasn't sure what to say. Dumbledore walked over to the shelf behind his desk and picked up the old wizard's hat. 'I think we should get you sorted first. Take a seat,' he said pointing to the chair.

Rachel walked over to the desk and sat down in the chair. Dumbledore walked over and placed the hat firmly on her head. Rachel jumped slightly as she heard a voice talking in her ear.

_Oh, another Potter, well aren't I the sheepish one. Your mind feels different to your brother's; you're more relaxed, more focused. I feel speechless; I'm not sure where to put you. I feel you would be bad for Slytherin; maybe not just enough for Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw may be good for you though. I can feel a ready and willing mind inside your head; I feel you're clever, but not quite cunning. But I also feel the nerve and daringness inside you waiting to burst into flames. Perhaps you should be in…_Gryffindor!

Dumbledore took the hat off her head as the hat shouted Gryffindor. Rachel felt strange. Most of the things the hat said didn't make any sense to her, she felt like the hat was talking gibberish. 'You'll get to share a room with Hermione then I see,' Dumbledore said smiling.

Rachel still couldn't think of anything to say so she kept quiet. Dumbledore continued, 'There are a few things for you to know, most students hear this every year but still, students are not allowed in the Forbidden Forest and please be careful with Filch the caretaker and don't kick his cat, no matter how tempting it is.'

Rachel giggled. 'Do you have any questions?' he asked still smiling at Rachel. Remus remained quiet.

Rachel shook her head. 'No, I can't think of anything right now.'

'Well, I'm sure Hermione could fill you in. I'll let you and Remus say goodbye and I'll summon your house ghost.'

Rachel nodded and watched as Dumbledore spoke to some of the portraits on the wall. Rachel walked over to Remus who suddenly looked nervous. 'If there are any problems just write to me, Ok?' Remus said looking into her eyes.

'I'll be fine Remus,' she said hugging him tightly. Remus kissed her on the cheek gently and he straightened his robes. 'Ok, guess this is it. Make sure you have fun. Goodbye,' Remus said almost sadly.

Rachel watched him walk to the door. 'Bye, Remus,' she as he left.

As she turned back around she saw Dumbledore looking at her kindly. Rachel suddenly felt alone, almost afraid now that Remus was gone. She was in a strange, new school, which she didn't know much about. After a few short moments Rachel yelped as a silvery figure glided into the room. He stopped by Dumbledore's side.

'You called Headmaster,' said the ghost.

'Yes I did. I would like you to meet Rachel Potter, who is a new Gryffindor student and Rachel; this is Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor Ghost.'

Rachel frowned as she looked at him, 'Are you actually nearly headless?'

Nick bowed slightly, 'Yes I certainly am.' He bowed further and lifted his head off his neck. Rachel could see the darkish grey area where there was still some skin attached. Rachel felt a little horrified as she looked. Nick put his head back on and turned his attention back to Dumbledore.

'Nick, I would like you to take Miss Potter, to the Gryffindor common room.'

Nick bowed again, 'I would be honoured,' he turned to Rachel, 'are you related to Harry Potter by any chance?'

Rachel nodded, 'Yeah, he's my twin brother.'

'I'm sure Gryffindor will win the Quidditch cup this year then. Very well, follow me my dear.'

Rachel looked to her bags. 'You can leave them, I will ask a house-elf to take them for you,' Dumbledore said walking over to his desk.

Nick floated towards the door and walked straight threw it. Rachel opened the office door, said a quick goodnight to Dumbledore before continuing to follow Nick.

Nick glided up the stairs next to Rachel as she walked up further and further. When they finally reached the seventh floor Nick took her over to a portrait that contained a large lady wearing pink. As they approached she turned to them. 'Password?' she asked sternly.

Rachel turned to look at Nick who was tapping his chin with his index finger, thinking hard. 'I believe it would be Pure Potions.'

The Fat Lady moved her arm and the portrait began to open. Nick just floated through the wall while Rachel walked through the portrait hole. The common-room was round and cosy, full of big red armchairs and sofas. Rachel noticed some tables around the room and a couple of bookshelves which were all piled to the top with books.

Nick was hovering by the stairs waiting for Rachel. She walked over and looked at him. 'The girls' dormitories are up the stairs and over to the left. Your possession should already be there waiting for you.'

Nick drifted absentmindedly over to another wall. 'Thanks Nick,' Rachel said quickly before he disappeared. Nick bowed to her again. 'Not a problem, if you ever need me I shall be around.' He disappeared through the wall and Rachel was left alone.

Rachel sighed. It looked quite nice at least. She looked up the stairs and walked up slowly examining her surroundings. Near the top she found a door with the sign _Sixth Year Girls' _written in gold. Rachel opened the door slightly and looked inside.

Rachel found her room where her things were sitting at the end of a bed next to the window. She walked over and looked over her possession but didn't touch any of them. She looked over at Hero who was sitting on the perch in his cage asleep.

Rachel walked over to the window and looked outside. She noticed a large man walking down the grounds. Rachel didn't know who it was but she could tell that the man was large. Rachel then looked towards the forest. It looked dark. She wondered what types of creatures were in there.

As she got ready for bed she wondered what would happen when her lessons started and how everything would go. She hoped no one gawked at her or stared at her too often. Rachel felt grateful that no one knew who she really was at the other school.

Rachel got into the bed slowly and loved how soft and comfortable the bed was. She pulled the white sheet and red quilt up to her neck and slowly fell asleep thinking about the future.

* * *

When Rachel awoke in the morning sunlight was pouring in the room lighting it up brightly. Rachel squinted as she looked out over the room. She lay back down on the bed and ran a hand through her hair making it messier. She wondered when the other students would arrive and thought that it wouldn't be until later tonight.

After a few minutes of trying to wake up properly Rachel got up and changed it a pair of black jeans and matched it with a red top and placed her black Gryffindor robes over the top. She placed on her shoes and check to see that she had her wand. She left the dormitory and walked down to the common-room.

When entering she noticed that nothing had changed. It only just occurred to Rachel that her possession had reached her dormitory before she did. She didn't know much about house-elves though, maybe they were just more efficient then other creatures.

Rachel walked down a corridor on the third floor and she could hear a scratching sound coming from a nearby room. Rachel went to see what it was. It was coming from a classroom; she could tell it was a classroom from the blackboard and all the books. She entered the room and watched as a mop, brush and scrubbers were cleaning the room by themselves.

'May I help you,' squeaked a voice.

Rachel jumped slightly and turned round to see a small man with a silver beard and thin hair looking up at her. 'Um, I'm Rachel Potter; I'm a new student here. I didn't mean to intrude; I just heard a noise and wondered what it was.'

'Nothing to apologise for,' the man said smiling up at her, 'I am Professor Flitwick; I'll be your Charms teacher. It's lovely to meet you Miss Potter. Dumbledore did tell us to expect you this year.'

Rachel smiled and shook his hand quickly. Flitwick walked back over to the cleaning equipment and went back to what he was doing. Rachel felt nervous. She left the room quietly. Maybe she should let him get on with it without being disturbed.

Rachel found herself two floors down and at the Entrance Hall. When she turned her head she saw another pair of double doors which led into the Great Hall. Rachel walked in and saw the teachers in there who went quiet as soon as they heard a noise. It was Dumbledore who spoke first. 'Miss Potter, please join us. You must be hungry.'

She nodded and walked over slowly. She noticed how big and spacious the room was. She wondered what it was actually used for. When she looked up at the ceiling she almost gasped. It didn't look like any ceiling she had ever seen. It looked like the sky outside. The sun was shining and the sky was a beautiful bright blue, and there were no clouds to be seen.

When Rachel reached the table Dumbledore conjured a chair between him and McGonagall. Rachel sat down slowly and looked at all the teachers before her, which most of who looked at her intriguingly. Dumbledore pointed to the teachers around the table as he introduced them. 'Here we have Professors McGonagall, who you already know is your Transfiguration teacher. Professor Snape will be teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts instead this year. Professor Flitwick will be your Charms teacher, Professor Babbling will be you Ancient Runes teacher, Professor Hagrid is teaching Care of Magical Creatures, Madam Hooch is the flying instructor, Professor Sinistra will be your Astronomy teacher, Professor Slughorn will be your Potions teacher, Professor Sprout will be your Herbology teacher, Professor Vector will be your Arithmancy teacher, Professor Trelawney teaches Divination-which I know you're not taking and Professor Burbage teaches Muggle Studies-which I also know you're not taking.'

As Dumbledore pointed out all the teachers to Rachel she felt overwhelmed. She looked all the teachers over again slowly. Rachel always felt that McGonagall was a strict, stern looking woman; Rachel made a mental note to not cross her at any time.

Rachel skipped Snape and Flitwick as she had already meet them, but she wondered how Flitwick got here before she did, and she turned her attention onto Professor Babbling. She looked to be a little younger than McGonagall but perhaps not by much. She had long curly blonde hair and her eyes were dark and beautifully lined and slanted. Rachel had trouble deciding if she was a nice teacher or a strict teacher.

Her eyes moved over to Hagrid who beamed at her, Rachel felt a little uncomfortable. She thought that coming out as Harry's sister would be easier than it has been. 'I'm good friend wit' your brother,' Hagrid said. Rachel wasn't sure how to reply to that.

'That's…nice,' she said hesitantly.

He beamed at her until McGonagall finally got his attention. Rachel felt relieved. Her eyes then moved next to Hagrid, where Madam Hooch was sitting. She reminded Rachel of a hawk. Her short grey hair stood up slightly and Rachel even felt like her gold eyes looked at everything like a hawk, sometimes as if it were prey.

Next to Madam Hooch was Professor Sinistra. Rachel thought she looked quite striking. She had shoulder-length wavy hair which was dark red. Her eyes were a bright grey; they glowed when she looked at her. Rachel looked at her longer; her pale skin seemed paler under the bright light shining into the Great Hall.

Rachel eventually moved on and took a good looked at the teacher sitting beside Professor Sinistra. Rachel looked Professor Slughorn over a few times. The first thing which came into her mind was a walrus. He was a big man with a large moustache. Rachel moved on quickly and looked Professor Sprout over. She was a short woman with greying hair and a plump face. She had a kind smile and kind looking eyes. Rachel had a small feeling she was going to like Herbology.

Rachel moved on and looked at Professor Vector next. She struck Rachel as being a private, quiet sort of person. She hadn't said much so far while the other teachers had been talking. She was quite pretty looking. She had very long ink coloured black hair and her eyes were a dark blue. Rachel though they were beautiful. Vector's head turned and she looked at Rachel, giving her a small smile which Rachel returned. Vector then continued to focus on the meeting at hand.

Rachel observed Professor Burbage and Trelawney together. Rachel thought Trelawney looked nervous about something, she wondered if she was always this peculiar, or if it was normal. Trelawney's eyes seemed to be darting back and forth a lot as though waiting for something bad to happen, she sort of reminded her of a large insect.

Burbage seemed to sit still, Rachel wondered stupidly for a moment if she were real. The main movement she ever made that Rachel had seen so far was to blink. Rachel thought she was alright looking. She had dirty blonde hair and dark grey eyes.

After a few moments the talk between the teachers died down and Dumbledore sighed, 'Everyone must be hungry by now,' he stated while looking around the table. Most of the teacher nodded and agreed silently. Dumbledore smiled and waved his wand and food appeared on the table.

Everyone got stuck into it immediately. Rachel waited for a few moments before joining them. She eventually lent forwards and took some chicken, potato and pumpkin juice. The teachers began small talk amongst each other and Rachel was hopping not to have to talk as well, but not much luck there.

'So, Miss Potter, we've heard you went to Beauxbatons,' Professor Vector said looking at her smiling.

Rachel swallowed her food carefully before saying anything. 'Yes I did. I liked it there but sometimes felt like an outsider.'

'That must have been hard,' Vector said quietly.

'It was sometimes. I still had a few friends there but I feel good being back home now,' Rachel said softly.

Vector smiled at her more and continued eating. 'At least you have some more time to settle in here,' McGonagall said after a moment's silence.

Rachel nodded her agreement and went back to eating. She listened too much of the conversation between her new teachers and she was happy she wasn't asked much else.

When everyone around the table finished eating, a lot of the teachers left to get things ready for their upcoming classes. Rachel excused herself and went back up to the Gryffindor common room. She was going to explore the grounds but she knew she had plenty of time for that.

Rachel went up to her dormitory and took out a book and began to read. She couldn't wait for Hermione to arrive later tonight.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Later that night Rachel met with Hermione and the others in the Entrance Hall. Hermione walked to her and smiled as they hugged each other.

'Like Hogwarts so far?' she asked cheerfully.

Rachel beamed and nodded. 'Yeah, I love it. It's fantastic. How's Remus doing?' she asked a little nervously.

'When he returned to Grimmauld Place he looked a little upset and worried but I think Sirius helped him cheer up a lot,' Hermione replied.

Rachel felt better at hearing that and they all entered the Great Hall together. They took their seats at the Gryffindor Table and listened as Professor McGonagall sorted the first-years and Dumbledore gave a short speech. When it finished the feast began and everyone tucked in.

When they finished they all went up to the common room together. Rachel and Hermione got some textbooks and sat in front of the fireplace together. After a while Rachel looked to the other side of the room where Harry sat with Ron and Ginny. Every now and then Harry's eyes would wander over to where Rachel and Hermione were sitting.

When most people, including Hermione had gone to bed, Rachel decided it was time to go to bed as well. She had her first classes tomorrow. Before she reached the stairs she heard a voice.

'Rachel,' Harry said inaudibly.

Rachel turned around and watched as Harry walked over to her. When he reached her, he handed her a large, thick book. Rachel took it tentatively. 'What is it?' she asked frowning faintly.

'It's a photo album. I have the same one; I had it copied for you.'

Rachel opened it and immediately felt tears come to her eyes. The photo album contained pictures of their parents, before they died, in the Order, at their wedding and more. Rachel fell into tears and dropped the album and hugged Harry tightly. Harry didn't quite hug her back though.

When Rachel let him go he moved away from her a little. 'I don't want you to think I'm Ok with this yet. I still have to get used to the idea of having a twin sister.'

Rachel nodded her understanding. 'But I hope things can get better,' she said picking up the album from the floor. She was happy she hadn't damaged it at all.

'We'll see,' Harry said walking to the stairs to his dormitory. Rachel sighed and wiped her face. She walked up the stairs to the girl's dormitory and when she entered Hermione was sitting on the bed waiting for her. She stood up, 'What happened?'

She showed Hermione the photo album. 'Harry made a copy of his own and gave it to me downstairs, I think he was a little embarrassed, so he waited.'

Hermione squealed slightly. 'Oooh, so is everything alright between you two now?'

Rachel smiled sadly. 'No, unfortunately, but I think it's a good start.'

They stayed up talking a little bit more before going to bed. 'What subject have we got first?' Rachel asked while climbing into bed.

Hermione climbed into her own, 'Um, we have Transfiguration.'

Rachel nodded and rolled onto her side. She didn't get to sleep until she heard someone's snores.

* * *

In the morning Rachel woke up before anyone else did. She walked down the stairs quietly. The only person in the common room was Ginny; she was sitting on an armchair by the window. Her head snapped up as she heard someone walk into the room.

Rachel went to have a shower. When she finished she went back to her dormitory. Hermione was up and getting dressed. They went down to breakfast but before reaching the Great Hall they ran into some unwelcome company.

'There's another Potter?' a drawling voice said.

Both Rachel and Hermione turned around. There was a group of Slytherin's standing in front of them. The leader had white-blonde hair, a pointed face and stormy grey eyes. Rachel looked him up and down as he approached them.

'Go away Malfoy,' Hermione said tugging the sleeve of Rachel's robes but Rachel pulled against it.

'And who are you?' Rachel asked frowning at him.

'I'm Draco Malfoy, you should learn to treat men above you better,' he said his face hardening.

Rachel tutted, 'Funny, I don't see a man in front of me.'

A group of passing Ravenclaws laughed and Hermione sniggered behind her. Rachel turned on her heel and walked into the Great Hall with Hermione following still sniggering, it was getting louder and louder. As they sat down at the Gryffindor table Hermione could no longer hold it, she burst out laughing, scaring a few first years around her.

Rachel couldn't help but laugh herself; she couldn't believe how amused Hermione was. They began to eat breakfast when a few more Gryffindor girls came into the Great Hall. Parvati, Lavender and Belvina sat around Rachel and Hermione.

'Did you really say that to Malfoy?' Belvina asked smiling.

Rachel couldn't understand what the big deal was. 'What do you mean?' she asked nonchalantly. She continued eating breakfast.

'Well, Malfoy isn't well like around here but not many people have insulted or taunted him back,' Parvati said starting to eat. 'It's a nice change.'

Rachel looked at Parvati and smiled. She still didn't quite understand but she hoped maybe if she were here longer it might shed some light on it.

Half-way through breakfast an owl swooped across Rachel and dropped a small note. Rachel looked at it a little before picking it; she wasn't sure who would write to her in the Great Hall.

She opened it slowly. The small piece of parchment was full of thin, slanted writing, written in emerald green ink. Rachel read it slowly:

_Miss Potter, please come to my office later tonight. There is something we need to discuss. Please come alone and come around eight o' clock. The password is Acids Pops, signed Albus Dumbledore._

Rachel re-read it again once before Hermione snatched it from her grasp. She looked over a little embarrassed, 'Sorry,' she whispered to Rachel.

Rachel ignored it, Hermione was her friend, it didn't matter. She couldn't help but wonder what Dumbledore wanted though. Was she in trouble? Had she done something wrong already?

After they finished breakfast Hermione and Rachel walked to Transfiguration together with Harry and Ron trailing behind them. They entered the classroom and Rachel took a seat next to Hermione. 'Who do you normally sit with?' Rachel asked glancing around.

'Um, normally with Harry or Ron or sometimes by myself,' she replied, her cheeks turning pink slowly. They turned to the front as Professor McGonagall walked into the classroom. She called out the role and they got to work. Rachel didn't expect the work to be this hard and she couldn't help but notice how easy it seemed to Hermione. She looked over at the other students and was glad to see that she wasn't person only one not able to do it straight away.

When the lesson finished Rachel and Hermione went off the Ancient Runes while Harry and Ron went to Divination. As they walked to the classroom Hermione was quiet. 'What's it like?' Rachel asked looking ahead.

'What?' Hermione asked distracted.

'Divination, have you done the subject before.'

Hermione nodded. 'Yeah but I didn't like it too much. Why aren't you taking it?'

Rachel shrugged. 'They did have the subject but I didn't take it, the teacher was a little… strange.'

Rachel jumped slightly as Hermione snorted a little. She flushed slightly and her face went back to a serious look. 'Yeah, there's one here too.'

Rachel understood. She has meet Trelawney. She did seem a little… strange. They entered the classroom and took seats at the front of the room. The teacher wasn't there yet. Rachel looked around. She and Hermione were the only Gryffindor's in the class. There were also four Ravenclaws and one Hufflepuff.

'Is something wrong?' Rachel asked looking at Hermione.

She didn't move. 'No, I'm fine.'

Rachel was about to say more but Professor Babbling entered the room. Her long, curly blonde hair was swept behind her head effortlessly. She reached the front of the room and turned around. 'Well, welcome back to class,' she said softly.

Rachel felt surprised. Babbling's voice was soft but strong. It was pleasant to listen to. 'I hope everyone has finished their holiday homework, except Miss. Potter, of course. Rachel looked up and saw Babbling give her the smallest of winks.

After the lesson Rachel said good-bye to Hermione and walked onto the grounds and down to Hagrid's hut. She was the only female sixth year Gryffindor taking this class. She was happy that Neville was taking it too. He smiled at her nervously before looking away again. Rachel returned the smile.

As they waited for Hagrid, Rachel walked over to Neville. 'Hi,' she said still smiling.

'H-hi,' he replied.

'You're good friends with Harry, right?'

Neville shrugged, 'Kind of.'

Rachel nodded and looked around. She looked at the huge pumpkins first. Her first thought was how they got to be that size. Rachel was surprised when Neville asked her a question. 'Can you see the thestrals?'

She frowned. 'What's a thestrals?'

'They're invisible animals that pull the Hogwarts carriages,' Neville replied.

'Then how do you see them?'

'You can only see them if you've seen death,' Neville said. Rachel thought he was starting to look uncomfortable. 'Is something wrong?' Rachel asked frowning. She wondered if it was her.

'Well, Harry sort have had a screaming match with Hermione last night,' he said slowly.

'Really? What was it about?' Rachel was shocked. She thought Harry was getting better with her being around.

'I don't know, we only heard the first part, then Hermione placed a silencing charm around the room. We heard your name mentioned.'

Rachel opened her mouth but nothing came out. 'What are you doing here Potter?'

Both Rachel and Neville turned around. Malfoy was standing not far from them. 'What do you want, Malfoy?' Rachel asked annoyed.

Malfoy took out his wand. Rachel did the same. She wasn't sure what he was going to do. 'I'm taking this class too Malfoy.'

'Yeah, apparently.'

Rachel hated his snide contempt. She thought it better to get it over with. 'Expelliarmus,' she whispered quickly. Everyone in the group turned around as Malfoy yelped loudly and tried to reach out for his wand, but failed. Rachel caught his wand in her outstretched hand and held onto it tightly.

'Give it back, Potter!' Malfoy yelled.

'What are you going to do about it, have your goons advance on me?'

Malfoy's cheeks turned a light shade of pink. Rachel couldn't decide whether he was angry or just embarrassed, or maybe it was both.

When Hagrid finally left his hut, Rachel threw Malfoy's wand to him. She knew he wouldn't do anything while a teacher was around. She joined Neville and they both followed Hagrid together.

Her last subject for the day was Defence Against the Dark Arts, she loved the subject but she knew if she ever came up against a dark creature, she'd probably panic and get killed for her trouble. Rachel knew that her brother, as well as the whole school were angry and shock that Snape was teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts this year instead of potions. Rachel wondered what he was like as the Potions Master though.

She reached the classroom and Hermione was already there, as were her brother and Ron. Though Hermione and Harry weren't talking, they appeared to be ignoring each other. Rachel knew they had another fight about her. She walked over to Hermione, 'Hi,' she said happily.

'Hi,' Hermione replied. Rachel greeted Harry too but he only grunted in reply and turned his head. Snape arrived to the class promptly and Rachel watched as his long black cloak swept gracefully behind him as he entered the room. They followed inside and Hermione and Rachel took a seat at the front. Her brother and Ron took a seat at the back of the classroom. Rachel wondered how angry Hermione was with Harry; she didn't even look at him.

Half-way during the lesson, they began to practice non-verbal spells. Rachel faced Hermione and they practiced on each other. When possible, Rachel looked around the room to see where Snape was. As he passed her brother, she heard the snide remarks he made to her brother. She noticed he did the same to Neville. Rachel wondered if this was normal.

As Snape walked passed Rachel, he was silent. He watched both her and Hermione do a non-verbal spell, and then he moved on to the other side of the room. Hermione looked at her in shock. Rachel felt surprised herself.

When the class finished Hermione went to the library to check something while Rachel walked back to the Gryffindor common room alone. She took out her homework and sat in an armchair near the fire and decided to get it over and done with.

After a couple of hours Hermione returned from the library. She looked flustered. She went up to their dormitory and put most of her things away. Rachel waited a few minutes, Hermione returned to the common room and joined her in front of the fire.

'Is everything alright?' Rachel asked, still watching Hermione.

She nodded and opened her books. She began her homework too. After another half-an-hour Rachel started to get impatient. She cleared her throat and put her books down. She looked at Hermione, who continued with her homework.

'Hermione,' Rachel said loudly.

Hermione looked up. 'What?'

'What happened last night?'

'What are you talking about?' she asked looking back down at her books.

'Come on, Hermione. Don't do that to me. Neville said that you and Harry had a screaming match last night and that my name was mentioned. What happened?' she asked again.

Hermione put her own books down and she sighed heavily. She moved her armchair closer to Rachel's and lowered her voice.

'Ok, I'll tell you. I went downstairs because I left my planner in the common room and Harry was in there. He told me he was having trouble sleeping. I was about to go back to bed when Harry started asking questions and it kind of got out of hand. We had a fight and yes it was mainly about you. He said that he still hates us being friends and all that kind of stuff. Like last time I told him he was being stupid and I told him to grow up and I went back to bed.'

Hermione stopped talking and moved her seat back into its original position. 'By the way, it's almost eight, you have to see Dumbledore.'

Rachel nodded and put her books away. She left Gryffindor Tower and on the way to Dumbledore's office she wondered why Harry was so hostile towards her. She couldn't imagine what she had done to make him this way. She thought he would be happy to learn that he had family around.

She reached the gargoyles and said Acid Pops. The statue moved aside and let her entered onto the moving stairway. When she reached the top she knocked on the door. She heard a small, but pleasant voice allowing her to enter. She walked in and saw Dumbledore sitting behind his desk with many pieces of parchment in front of him.

'Oh, Miss Potter, please come in,' he said contentedly. Rachel walked in a sat down in the chair opposite. She looked at Dumbledore and waited for him to speak first.

'So, how are things going with Harry?' he asked still smiling a little.

Is that what he wanted? Rachel frowned a little but relaxed her face again quickly. 'Things are fine. Well, we're getting there slowly.'

'That's good to hear. Now, I wanted to talk to you about a subject.'

Rachel looked around the room nervously. She wasn't sure what to say, so she remained quiet. 'I would like you to learn Occlumency and Professor Snape has agreed to teach it to you. I trust you know what Occlumency is?'

Rachel nodded slightly. 'Isn't it blocking someone from your mind?'

'Indeed it is. I do understand that Voldemort has no knowledge of you at present but I fear that it may change very soon. The papers are reporting about you, saying that Harry has a secret twin, so I'm sure Voldemort won't be in the dark for much longer. I also understand that you have no connection to him but we are doing this as a precaution, nothing more.'

'Connection?' Rachel asked frowning. She was hearing a lot that meant nothing to her.

'Your brother has a, sort of, mind connection with Voldemort. They can see into each other's minds and in the case that you're captured or anything close to it, we all want to make sure you can do this. I also believe that Remus has spoken to Professor Snape to make sure he is well behaved?'

'Um, why?'

'Well, Professor Snape tried to teach the subject to your brother but it didn't go so well. They don't always get along very well.'

Rachel wondered if Dumbledore was playing with words. From what she had seen so far, they don't seem to like each other at all. But, she nodded and wondered how hard the subject could be.

'Professor Snape will have these lessons once a week with you to begin with, he may want to increase it but it's up to him. Also, if anything happens, in any sense, please speak to me.'

Rachel nodded again. 'The lessons will be on Tuesday nights at eight, I believe. I think that is it, goodnight Miss Potter.'

Rachel stood up. 'Thanks. Goodnight Professor.'

She left Dumbledore's office feeling a little strange. If her lessons were to start straight away then the first one would be tomorrow night. Thinking about it made her nervous. She has never been alone with Snape. She figured this might be her chance to find out why he looks at her the way he does.

When Rachel reached the Gryffindor Tower and entered the common room, there was only one person in there and it was someone who she needed to have a good word with. The anger within her rised.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The common room was quiet until Rachel stormed in and approached her brother. Harry looked up quickly at her and stood up, his book falling to the ground. 'What?' he asked frowning.

'I need to know something, what is your problem with me?' she asked loudly.

'I don't know what you're talking about?'

'Stop it, Harry!' Rachel yelled loudly. 'Neville told me about you and Hermione having a screaming match about me. When will this end? I want to know why you hate me? What have I done?'

Harry shrugged. He looked around. He seemed uncomfortable. 'I don't know… I was just shocked to hear about you.'

'So were many other people,' Rachel said, her voice still loud. Rachel's pretty face was etched in anger and her almond shaped eyes were narrowed in slits.

'I know, I just… I don't know,' Harry said stammering a little. He wasn't sure what to do or say.

'Then why have you been avoiding me? And not talking to me? And fighting with Hermione? This has to end. When I arrived here I was hoping that we would be friends and eventually act like brother and sister, but apparently you don't want anything like that.'

'But why did you come back now? Why not come after the wars over?' Harry shouted.

'Because I wanted to meet you, is that not good enough? I know there's a war on and Remus begged me not to come back but he eventually agreed. I don't really know why, he and Dumbledore hate me being here too but I didn't think you would. I thought you'd want family here.'

'But why be here when you're in danger by just being here? Dumbledore and Lupin must know that this could be just another thing for Voldemort to get his claws on and destroy.'

'Like I said, I know what I was getting into when I decided to come here earlier than planned.'

Harry said nothing more, he was still looking uncomfortable and his gaze was at the floor. Rachel moved closer but Harry took a few steps back. She sighed heavily.

'Fine! If you don't want to know me then don't but make sure you realise that this is none of my fault. It wasn't my choice to separate us and I as hell didn't want us to end up like this. I'm sorry I came here, I'm sorry I ruined your life and I'm sorry you didn't know about me. I was excited to meet you but maybe I shouldn't have come here at all, maybe I would have been better off,' she yelled.

Rachel stormed out of the common up to her dormitory. She went straight to bed and wrenched the curtains shut. She laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. She felt the anger seethe within her; it made her body flush with heat.

* * *

The next morning when Rachel got up the only person in the room was Hermione. 'Is everything alright?' she asked quietly.

Rachel nodded distractedly as she got out her clothes for the day. 'A lot of people heard… the fight last night,' said Hermione nervously.

'I'm sure they did,' Rachel said as she got dressed.

As they walked down to breakfast Hermione looked sideways at Rachel. 'Are you angry with me at all?'

Rachel shook her head. 'No, why would I be? You've been nothing but friendly to me since I arrived. I'm going to forget that.'

Hermione smiled broadly and they entered the Great Hall together. They sat down at the Gryffindor table and began eating breakfast. The room was like it was yesterday, full of noise and excited chatter for the day ahead. Rachel couldn't help but notice that Harry wasn't at the table. 'Have you spoken to Harry yet?' Rachel asked after swallowing her food carefully.

'No, I haven't, but we'll see him in Potions, it's our first class this morning.'

When breakfast finished, Rachel and Hermione walked down to the dungeons together and took a seat at the back. They took out their cauldrons and ingredients and waited for Slughorn to arrive. Everyone in the room noticed three large cauldrons, all of which were bubbling. Rachel noticed that as Slughorn walked to the front of the room he greeted both Harry and Blaise Zabini with much enthusiasm.

The four Slytherin's in the class sat at a table together, as did the four Ravenclaws while Rachel and Hermione sat together, with Harry and Ron sitting at a table with the only Hufflepuff in the class, Ernie Macmillan. They all followed Slughorn as he stood at the front and turned to face them all.

'Now then,' he started loudly, inflating his already large chest. 'I have prepared three potions for you to see, just out of interest of course. There three potions who should be able to make after completing your N.E.W.T.s. I'm sure you've all heard of them but haven't made any yet. Now, who can tell me what this cauldron contains?'

He was pointing to the cauldron which hung near the Slytherin table. Rachel lifted out of her seat slightly to look inside the cauldron. It looked like boiling water. She jumped slightly as Hermione's hand shot up high into the air, Slughorn pointed to her.

'It's Veritaserum. A colourless and tasteless truth potion,' Hermione said confidently.

'Very good,' Slughorn said happily, 'Now, what about this one?'

Once again, Hermione's hand shot into the air. Slughorn pointed to her again. 'It's Polyjuice Potion, Sir,' she said.

Rachel looked to it and saw it looked dark, thick and bubbling. She did recognise it as well; they made that potion at Beauxbatons. They got to make it in their fourth year. The teachers had a hard time making sure none of the students kept it though. Rachel hated the smell of it.

'Well done, Miss Granger,' Slughorn said excitedly. 'Now, I'm not sure many of you will recognise the next one… yes, Miss Granger?' he asked slightly bemused.

'It's Amortentia,' she announced.

'Indeed it is, well done once more. It seems silly to ask, but I'm more you know what it does?' Slughorn asked looking impressed.

'It's the most powerful love potion that has been made,' she said clearly.

Rachel was amazed by much Hermione seemed to know about… well everything.

Slughorn went on to tell the class about the Amortentia Potion. 'It is the most powerful love potion in the world. It doesn't actually create love; it causes a powerful infatuation or obsession in the drinker. It also as a distinctive mother-of-pearl sheen and steam rises from it in characteristic spirals. It has a different aroma to everyone who smells it, reminding them of the things that they find attractive.'

Rachel, along with other people in the room heard a few snorts of laughter from the Slytherin's when Slughorn said Amortentia would create an obsession.

He turned to them. 'I know it may seem funny but don't underestimate the power of obsessive love. Now, let's move onto the last cauldron. It is a potion called Felix Felicis. And I take it,' he said turning to Hermione while smiling, 'that you know what it does.'

Hermione had let out a small gasp and a small smile. 'It's liquid luck,' she announced.

When Hermione mentioned those three little words the whole class seemed to sit up a little straighter and pay more attention to their teacher.

'Very good, Miss Granger, you're very smart indeed. Thirty points to Gryffindor.'

Rachel turned to Hermione and nudged her. Hermione went a little pink but Rachel just smiled broadly. She knew deep down that Hermione was proud of herself.

Slughorn continued. 'Now, we're going to have a small competition. The first person, who does the best job of making the Draught of Living Death will get,' he paused as he took a small corked vial from within his robes, 'this small bottle of Felix Felicis. There is enough in here for twelve hours of luck.'

Everyone the room shuffled around quickly as they rushed to get their ingredients ready and turn their textbooks to the right page. Rachel joined in but she was sure she wasn't going to get the prize. She wasn't very good at Potions.

At the end of the lesson Rachel left the dungeons alone. Hermione went to Harry and spoke to him about his new Potions textbook; she thought there was something not quite right with it. Rachel looked at the group and felt unsure of herself. She didn't want to be around Harry for some reason.

During the small break, before the next lesson, Rachel made her way towards Dumbledore's office. The password was still the same and she walked up the moving stairs. When she came to the door though, she could hear two voices talking vociferously. It sounded like Dumbledore and… Remus.

Rachel moved closer to the door to listen. She heard Remus sighed almost angrily. 'Albus, Rachel isn't a child anymore; she deserves to know the truth.'

'Remus, think it through, she doesn't need to know anything. The information wouldn't serve any great purpose. There is nothing she could do with the information.'

A loud bang issued from within the room. It made Rachel jump back a little. 'Albus, Rachel is like my own daughter and I will not, under any circumstance, lie to her!'

Rachel let out a small sobbing noise and the room beyond the door went silent. Rachel quickly knocked on the door and waited. It was opened by Remus. He looked at her in surprise. 'Rachel, what are you doing here?'

'I wanted to speak to Professor Dumbledore,' she replied softly.

'Come in then, Miss Potter,' Dumbledore said moving around his desk to sit down. Rachel walked into the room and Remus closed the door gently. 'Do you want me to stay?' he asked closing the distance between them.

'Yeah, of course. You probably need to hear this too. Um, I was thinking about going back to Beauxbatons to finish school. Things aren't really working out here.'

The room went quiet when Rachel finished speaking. Remus gave Dumbledore a hard look. Dumbledore sighed. 'Well, I don't think it would be possible for you to go back. It would be unsafe since the wizarding world now know about you,' he said calmly.

Rachel nodded slightly. She thought about mentioning her fight with Harry to Remus, but she decided against it. She wasn't sure what to say next. She felt a little uncomfortable though.

'I better go to my next lesson,' she said quietly. She hugged Remus quickly and left the office. She went straight to the Charms classroom. The only person there was Hermione. She smiled faintly. 'Where you get to?' she asked.

'I went to see Dumbledore,' she replied softly, 'Just wanted to see about going back to Beauxbatons.

'You're not, are you?' Hermione asked, worry etched on her face.

Rachel shook her head. 'No, I can't, I don't know why though.' Hermione relaxed and they waited for Flitwick to arrive.

When the class was over, Rachel was beginning to feel tired already. Each teacher so far kept telling them about their N.E.W.T.s and how difficult they were going to be. Rachel was sick of hearing it already. She was already nervous thinking about the exams which were still more than a year away.

Her last two classes of the day were Arithmancy and History of Magic. She found Arithmancy to be extremely interesting, although History of Magic turned out to be a little dull. She noticed during the class that most people did something else while Professor Binns was talking; no-one really seemed to listen, except for Hermione. Rachel did take some notes but she found herself zoning out a little too.

When it was over Rachel left the classroom and went back to the Gryffindor Tower. She dropped her things off in her room and went outside onto the grounds. She sat by the lake and dipped her hand into the water. She did like Beauxbatons but she had to admit that she loved Hogwarts so far. Well, except that she wasn't getting along with Harry.

* * *

After an hour Rachel looked up to see Harry walking towards her. He walked slowly. He seemed unsure about something. When he reached her, he ran a hand through his hair. 'Can we talk?'

Rachel shrugged. 'About what?'

'Well, about what happened before? I know you're angry with me and I feel bad about what I said.'

'Really? I find that hard to believe.'

'Please, Rachel. I still think there's another reason for you being here, because I can't see Dumbledore or Lupin putting you in danger for no reason and I'm not sure how we can be friends but I would like to see if we could at least be civil to each other.'

Rachel said nothing.

'I'm sorry for what I said and how I spoke to you, I didn't mean to upset you,' Harry said. Rachel looked at him. She was amazed at how much he looks like their father. Harry's face looked worried, or was it anxious? She couldn't tell.

'Do you want to talk?' she asked uncertainly.

Harry nodded and sat beside Rachel. She watched him. They were both unsure of what to say or do next. 'I noticed that you and Lupin are quite close. I'm surprised he hasn't told you why you're really back here.'

'Yeah, I love Remus, and I'm not sure there is another reason,' she said almost distantly. 'Do you and Sirius get along well?'

Harry nodded. 'Yeah of course, he was best friends with our father. Well, Remus was too but Sirius was closer to him. He was best man at their wedding.'

Rachel nodded. She already knew that. 'Are you dating Ginny?' she asked not looking at Harry.

'No, why do you ask?'

Rachel shrugged. 'She looks at you.'

'She's dating Dean Thomas,' Harry said frowning.

'Oh come on Harry, you look at her too. Besides you can still look if you're dating someone.'

Harry cocked an eyebrow at her. 'Really? Are you dating?'

Rachel shook her head. 'No,' she said calmly.

It went silent between them. Rachel looked at her watch and stood up. 'It's almost eight; I have to go see Snape.'

Harry frowned heavily. 'What for?'

'He's supposed to be giving me Occlumency lessons,' she replied fixing her robes.

'You're kidding?'

Rachel shook her head. 'No, I'm not,' she hesitated, 'So we're not enemies anymore right?'

Harry stood up and looked around. 'No, but… I don't know.'

She understood. 'I know things are still weird and awkward and I'm not expecting us to be friends straight away. I know these things take time.'

Harry nodded in agreement and Harry watched as Rachel walked back towards the castle. He needed to talk to Sirius and see if he could find out a solution to his problem.

* * *

When Rachel reached Snape's office, she looked at her watch again. She was five minutes early. She knocked on the door and heard a cold voice telling her to enter. She opened the door and entered his office. She closed the door behind her and walked over to his desk. She looked around the room as she waited to him to finish what he was doing.

The room was dark and looked quite uninviting. There were many things on the shelfs that she didn't recognise. She looked back at Snape. He continued to writing on a long piece of parchment. When she looked behind him though she saw a large white basin. It looked like it had water inside it. Her eyes snapped back to Snape as he stood up from his desk and put most things away.

He turned his back to Rachel and placed the tip of his wand to his temple. When he moved it away and long silvery strip went with it and Snape placed it inside the basin. He turned back to her. 'Take a seat, Miss Potter.'

Rachel did as she was told. Snape, however, remained standing now. 'I trust you know why you are here?' he asked softly.

Rachel nodded. 'To learn Occlumency,' she replied.

'That is correct. Do you know what it is?'

'Yes,' she said nodding, 'it's learning how to block your mind from magical penetration.'

Snape looked impressed. Rachel wondered if that happened very often. 'In these lessons, I will be teaching you to do just that. I will try to access your mind and you will be trying to keep me out. Any questions?'

Rachel nodded. 'I have one. Do you know why I was brought here, to Hogwarts?'

'Because you wanted to be,' he replied simply.

'No, I meant the real reason?'

'I suggest you talk to your _god-father_.'

Rachel's eyes narrowed slightly, but she remembered what Hermione had told her before coming here. Not to get angry with him. 'Also, why do you need a pensieve?'

'Because my memories are my own. They are not for you to see, should you be able to push me out of my mind. But you would only see them if you manage to break into my mind, which I think unlikely to happen.'

'Why?'

'I also suggest that you refer to me as "Sir" or "Professor",' Snape said in a low voice.

'I'm sorry, Sir, why is it unlikely to happen?'

'Because I am a skilled Occlumens. The main way for you to break in would be by accident.' Snape took his wand out and pointed it at Rachel. She stiffened. 'Ready yourself.'

Snape counted down from three but Rachel still wasn't entirely ready for the impact it would have, 'Legilimens,' Snape shouted at her. All Rachel saw was a wave of colour that swirled around her and then she could see a flood of memories whirring through her head. She knew Snape could see everything she could.

After what seemed like forever Snape removed himself from her mind. When Rachel opened her eyes she looked around quickly. She realised she was kneeling on the floor and covering her ears with her hands. She looked up at Snape who just stared back at her.

'What was that?' he asked still looking at her.

Rachel stood up and shrugged. 'I don't know. I felt like I couldn't control anything. After it happened it felt like the room melt or disappeared.'

'Hmmm,' Snape murmured. 'Before I do it again, try and clear your mind of everything, especially all emotion. They will not help you should someone try and enter your mind,' he said unhurriedly.

Rachel frowned. She was starting to notice that Snape spoke to and treated her differently than he did to her brother. Why? She thought he would treat her the same way.

'If someone enters your mind,' Snape continued, 'they will not do it for fun or for a laugh. Breaking into someone's mind is a personal and draining thing. It can be used to the person's advantage. When you become more skilled you'll be able to not only stop them entering but if you had to you could show them something that isn't entirely true.'

Rachel felt surprised. 'Does that normally work, Sir?'

Snape regarded her before answering. 'It can, but you'd have to make it look convincing. Now, let's try again and this time discipline your mind, push out the emotions and put an impenetrable wall behind your mind.'

Rachel nodded and she watched his wand as he lifted it. 'Legilimens,' he shouted again. Almost the same thing happened, although Rachel did not fall to the ground, but she still covered her ears. When she felt the pressure on her lift she looked up at Snape.

'Why am I covering my ears?'

'Because you were screaming.'

'Screaming?' she questioned.

Snape nodded. 'Yes, your brother did something similar though I must say that your scream is much more piercing.'

Rachel's mouth twitched as though she was going to smile but she didn't. 'Is that normal, Sir?'

'It can be,' he replied. 'Everyone is different when learning this but some people catch on quicker than others. By the way, who was the boy?'

' What boy, Sir?'

'The one who kissed your hand?'

'Oh, that. I went to Beauxbatons with him. He was my date at the annual school dance. There was one at the end of every year. I went with him but I wasn't that interested.'

Snape nodded mildly as he listened. Rachel felt her face turn a little red at telling to story; she tried ignoring it and focused back on the lesson. They practiced another six times before Snape ended it.

'You did quite well for your first time, but you have much more to learn still. Every night before you go to sleep you are to practice removing everything from your mind. Clear it and relax it. I shall know if you have practiced or not.'

Rachel nodded. She said goodnight and she left his office quickly. She made her way back to Gryffindor Tower and in the common room, she found Hermione in there alone writing. Rachel walked over to her and sat beside her. Hermione pushed a tray towards her. 'Harry mentioned you hadn't eaten, so I spoke to a house-elf and they brought some food up,' she said before writing a little more.

'Thanks,' Rachel said smiling. She pulled the tray towards her and began to eat quickly. 'Harry mentioned you two spoke.'

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, but don't get too excited, we're not friends yet. I think he's still a little wary of me and everything.'

Hermione nodded and went back to writing. When she finished she pushed the tray away a little. 'How'd the lesson with Professor Snape go?' she asked setting her quill down upon the table.

'It was fine.'

Hermione gave her a stern look. Rachel sighed and decided to tell Hermione everything. She was her best friend after all.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

For the Christmas Holidays, Rachel went back to Grimmauld Place, alone. Hermione told her that Harry was going to the Dursley's for a couple of days. Hermione had also explained about her other relatives. She didn't really like the sound of them though. She was surprised to hear about them though, Remus never mentioned her mother having a sister.

When she arrived at the station, Remus was there to meet her. He looked the same, though tired. He hugged her and he was smiling broadly. 'How was your first term?' he asked cheerfully.

Rachel wondered if his mood had something to do with her being back. 'It was fine,' she replied.

Remus picked up her trunk and Rachel kept hold of her other bag as they walked towards London. 'How are things with Harry? Are they any better?'

'No,' Rachel said honestly while shaking her head. 'We have talked once, and two other small times but it was nothing.'

She tried to ignore the look Remus gave her. 'And how are the lessons with Severus going?'

'They're fine, actually. I thought it would be horrible but he's not as bad as I thought he would be.'

'Excuse me!' Remus asked in surprise. 'Your father and Severus were enemies; he is with your brother as well.'

Rachel just shrugged. 'Well, maybe it's different with me. I don't look like dad.'

'No, you don't…' Remus said trailing off a little.

* * *

When they reached Grimmauld Place, Rachel placed her things in the same room she stayed in before and joined Remus and Sirius in the kitchen. 'Will anyone else be staying here during the holidays?' Rachel asked sitting down opposite Sirius.

Remus continued making a pot of tea but it was Sirius who answered her. 'Some of the Weasleys will be, and Hermione, of course.'

'Does it include Charlie?' she asked inaudibly.

Her face went pink slightly as Remus turned to look at her, but Sirius grinned. 'No, unfortunately, he's back in Romania. I'm sure he'll send you something.'

Rachel looked at Remus as he muttered some incoherent but she decided to let it go. She had never had a boyfriend before and she had to admit that the idea intrigued her. She thought Charlie was good-looking and his body was definitely something to look at. Rachel was just hoping he would be around so she could get to know him a little more, and she realised that Remus didn't like that idea.

* * *

A few days later when Rachel went into the kitchen she stopped when she noticed that Sirius was the only person in the room. 'Is Remus around?' she asked quietly.

Sirius shook his head, 'No, I thought he'd tell you, he's off doing a job for the Order. He should be back in a couple of days. I made breakfast; it's on the stove if you want some.'

She muttered her thanks and took a plate out from the cupboard. She got some eggs and bacon and joined Sirius at the table. He was drinking coffee and reading the Daily Prophet. She thought about what they could talk about.

'Does Remus ever really talk about mum or dad?' she asked when half-way through breakfast.

Sirius looked up at her over his paper. He thought for a moment. 'Not really. How much has he told you about them?'

Rachel thought through things, it didn't take long though. 'Not much. I know that you were best man at their wedding and I know that you all went to school together and um, I know that you and dad were best friends and also that mum and dad started going out in your seventh year.'

'That's it?' Sirius asked a little surprised.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, from what I know, Remus doesn't really like to talk about mum and dad, though I don't know why. I've asked him questions before but he seems to dance around his answers.'

'Yeah, that sounds like Remus. Maybe he just wants to wait until you're older,' Sirius said looking back at his paper.

'I'm sixteen though,' she exclaimed a little louder than she intended. Sirius looked up at her a chuckled slightly. Rachel's face went a little red and she chuckled too. 'Is there anything you can tell me?'

Sirius placed the newspaper on the table and folded his arms across his chest. He considered Rachel. 'I don't think Remus will like that too much but I will say, you remind me a lot of Lily.'

'In what way?' Rachel asked moving forwards in her seat a little, ignoring her breakfast.

Sirius took a deep breath and leaned back in his chair. He ran a hand through his tousled hair, making it worse and he chuckled again slightly. 'Lily was quite… strong, you know, capable.'

Rachel frowned at him and Sirius laughed. 'Ok, maybe I should explain a little better. I remember once at school, we were sitting in the grounds and James did something to Lily in the previous class, which was charms I believe and she stormed over to us and you wouldn't believe how angry and pissed off she was with James.'

'Did they hate each other?' Rachel asked worriedly.

'Nah, well, your father had been chasing her since they were fourteen but your mother didn't want to know him. She thought he was an arrogant little berk. They finally got together in our seventh year though, like Remus told you.'

Sirius continued. 'Lily was a strong woman, feisty even. She was quite intelligent too, had a knack for Potions, I once heard.'

The room went quiet as Sirius finished talking. Rachel wasn't sure what to say next. She was quite proud to hear she was similar to her mother.

'Who was her best friend at school?' Rachel asked slowly.

Sirius thought about it for a moment. He seemed to debate whether to tell Rachel. 'Well, I think Remus would like me to stop there.'

'Oh come on Sirius, please. Was it a guy?'

'Yeah, your father and he didn't get along. I'm a little surprised they were friends and I still wonder why they were. She did have many female friends too though,' he replied.

'Was it Professor Snape?'

Sirius' eyes narrowed a little at Rachel. 'How did you know that?'

Rachel shrugged. 'I don't know. Something I heard earlier, I think. Remus told me dad and Professor Snape didn't get along, that they were enemies.'

'Yeah, they were, I don't like Snape either to be honest. He was an odd teenager,' he commented. Sirius was staring at the table. He seemed lost in thought for a moment. Rachel wondered if he was thinking about the good old days with her father.

Many times, she thought about them and wished they were still alive but she was happy that she had Remus around and now Sirius, who knew them both. It made some things a little easier to deal with. She picked up her plate and walked over to the sink.

'You didn't eat everything?' Sirius said, noticing her plate.

'Yeah, I'm not too hungry. I might go upstairs and read.'

Sirius stood up from his chair quickly and walked over to Rachel. 'Have I upset you? I didn't mean too,' he said quickly.

She shook her head. 'No, I'm fine, I just… I'm fine.'

'Are you clearing your mind before going to sleep?' Sirius asked before Rachel left.

'How do you know about…?'

'Remus told me. Snape isn't being mean or anything is he?'

'No, it's been fine,' she said quietly.

She left the kitchen quickly and began walking up the stairs to her room. She walked in and sat down on the bed. She felt different. She suddenly felt strange. She felt two tears run down her cheeks and she wiped them away in surprise. She looked down at her hand; she couldn't remember the last time she cried.

* * *

A few nights later, Hermione and the others arrived. Though she was surprised they arrived so late at night. She thought they wouldn't here there until the morning. She had been awoken by the noise when Hermione came into the room. 'Can I sleep in here with you this time?' she asked looking at Rachel.

'Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you,' she added quickly.

'No, it's Ok, yeah come on in,' Rachel said groggily.

Hermione smiled and walked over to the other bed placing her things on top. She unpacked her things quickly and changed for bed. Rachel sat up in her bed. 'How come you're all here at this time of night?'

Hermione got onto her bed and faced Rachel. 'Well, I met the Weasleys at the burrow in the afternoon and then we all went to pick Harry up and his other relatives aren't very accepting, so it took a while, plus I don't think Harry was expecting us so early.' Hermione paused. 'I mean your relatives too,' she added swiftly.

Rachel laughed and lay back down. 'It's fine. Is Harry here too, then?'

'Yeah, he and Ron are sharing the same room again.'

'What about Ginny, where is she sleeping?' Rachel asked as she stared at the ceiling.

The noise in the room shifted as Hermione sighed heavily and got into bed. 'She's sharing a room with her parents. I feel kind of bad but since we're friends I thought we'd share a room this time.'

'Why doesn't she just sleep in here?'

'Well... she doesn't like you too much,' Hermione said bluntly. 'Ginny's been strange since you turned up. She likes Harry and I think she sees you as a threat.'

Rachel sat up in shock. 'What the hell? I'm Harry's sister, not his estranged wife.'

She felt bad against the bed and all she heard was Hermione's laughter fill the room. When her laughter subsided, silence fell between them. It took Rachel a little longer than usual to fall asleep. She kept thinking about her short conversation with Sirius and his words echoed in her head over and over. She was like her mother. There were things Remus hadn't told her. She wondered what else there was for her to know.

* * *

The next morning when Rachel awoke she looked around the room groggily. It was cold and it looked foggy outside the window. She looked at the clock on the bedside table. It was just after five. She got out of bed quietly and got dressed. She thought about going for an early morning walk. She knew it would be cold but maybe she needed something to shock her.

She made it to the front door before she stopped as voices flowed to her from the living room. It was Sirius and Harry, what were they doing wake at this time? Rachel knew she shouldn't have but she moved closer to the living room door which was open, but only by a small crack. She peered through but she could only see the outline of Sirius. It had to be him, he was taller than Harry.

The living room became silent. Rachel moved closer and tried to listen harder. 'I've heard you and Rachel don't get along,' Sirius said quietly.

Harry walked past her view and she saw him shrugged slightly. 'I don't know. She's... different,' he stated.

'What do you mean different? She reminds me of your mother,' said Sirius.

'I don't know,' Harry said again. 'She just... I don't know. I was shocked and angry when she first came here, then I kept asking why, then I wondered why she was really here and now we've got the same friends and I just don't know what to think.'

'Well,' said Sirius slowly, 'I think you've got to give it time. You and Rachel aren't going to became best friends overnight. Your family and you've been separated for a while, it will take time. Give her a chance.

'Yeah, I guess. One thing, do you know why she's really here?' Harry asked slowly.

Sirius seemed to stutter air for moment before speaking. He gave himself away. 'Yes, there is another reason why she's here but it's not my place to tell you, her or anyone. Remus has yet to tell Rachel and when he's ready he will.'

'Is it something bad? Is she really my twin?' he asked quickly.

Sirius bark-like laugh echoed the room before quickly dying down. 'She really is your twin, Harry, we never lied about that. Rachel did ask to come here but it wasn't the reason she was allowed to. And, no, it's nothing bad, just a routine check that went against us.'

'What...'

'No, Harry, that's enough. We wait until Remus has spoken to Rachel. Until then, you say nothing, even to Rachel. Ok?'

Harry sighed, 'Yeah alright, I won't say anything.'

It went quiet in the room again and Rachel heard two pairs of footsteps. She decided she had lingered long enough, so she quietly went to the front door and left the house. She wasn't quite sure where to go but decided to walk around the block.

* * *

When she returned to the house, she found Remus and others sitting around the kitchen table, they appeared to be awaiting her return. She looked around at them and she jumped slightly as Remus shot out of his chair and walked to her quickly. He hugged her tightly and he was breathing heavily.

'Where were you?' she asked looking into her eyes.

'I went for a walk. Why? Is there a problem?' she asked feeling worried.

Remus sighed and he walked back to his chair. Rachel followed and sat in the empty chair beside him. 'Hermione woke up and she came down saying you weren't there. We searched the house for you but couldn't find you anywhere. Don't go out without telling someone,' Remus said firmly still looking at her.

Rachel nodded her head rapidly. 'Ok, I won't,' she replied clearly. She spoke again before anyone did. 'Also Remus, I want to know why I'm really here.'

The room went quiet as all eyes landed on Remus. 'What makes you think you're here for something else?'

'Before I went on my walk I overheard Sirius and Harry talking. Sorry,' she added looking at Sirius, who just dismissed it with a smiled. 'And I want to know the real reason. I thought it was because I asked to be here but apparently I'm wrong, so please tell me.'

Remus shifted in his seat. He looked uncomfortable. 'Well, it's not really a big deal though, but I guess I could tell you. You asked not long after your first term if you could go back to Beauxbatons and we said you couldn't, well, we didn't lie. You can't go back there again. They know who you are.'

Rachel frowned. 'How? Who told them?'

'They found out themselves. They were becoming paranoid about Voldemort's return so they checked everyone's background to make sure they wouldn't be a threat to the school, and unfortunately they found nothing on your background because Rachel Lupin isn't a real person. The last few years of you being at that school we sent Kingsley there a few times to make sure nothing was happening. The last time he came back and told us about their background checking. We knew it was over. You had to come back here. Kingsley informed us that they were going to arrest you, since you didn't actually exist but as you know, your friends took you to the airport quickly.'

'Do you know these... friends?' Rachel asked quietly.

Remus nodded and moved in his seat more. 'Yes, we do actually. The friends you stayed with and that we spoke to are Fleur's cousins. I think they're second cousins or something but the point is they're related and we told them about us and about you, well, Fleur did anyway.'

Rachel's head turned quickly as she looked to Fleur who was looking at Rachel smiling a little. She felt strangely surprised and shocked. 'Why not tell me all of this before?'

She looked back at Remus who shrugged. 'I don't know really. I know you loved being at Beauxbatons and I know you're having a strange time at Hogwarts. I just didn't want to upset you, I guess.'

Rachel moved closer to Remus and hugged him quickly. 'That is true, but you should have just told me. It's not a big deal and yeah, I did like Beauxbatons but it was hard being away from everyone for so long. I think something good has come out of the background check.'

Remus smiled and kissed her on the cheek. 'We have an Order meeting soon and after that Hermione suggested you all Christmas shopping, which I think is a good idea.'

Rachel nodded and along with Hermione, Harry, Ron and Ginny, she went into the living room. They all stood there silently. After a few moments, Rachel decided to get ready for their outing.

When they returned from their trip to Diagon Alley, Rachel went straight to her room and wrapped the presents quickly. She wanted it over and done with. Rachel decided to buy Remus some new robes. She knew many of his old ones were, well, old. He always kept trying to repair his old ones when there was a new rip or tear. She also knew that he might have a problem with his god-daughter buying him things, she planned to ignore him.

Later that night when they were all having dinner, Remus had informed Rachel about Snape coming around for another Occlumency lesson. She sighed inwardly. She didn't want to do this on the holidays. She wasn't sick him but she was sick of the screaming and the ringing pain within her mind when it happens.

* * *

As Rachel stood in one of the top rooms at Grimmauld Place, she knew this room once belonged to Sirius' brother, Regulus. He told them to use it as it was at the top of the house and are more likely not to hear anything, but Snape placed a silencing charm over the room. She looked at the man before her. Snape was removing a few memories from his mind. She waited patiently as once again he did this. While she waited she took the opportunity to talk to him.

'Remus told me why I'm really here. It's not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.'

Snape remained silent, so Rachel continued. 'Sirius told me you and my mother were friends at school.'

At hearing her words, Snape turned to finally look at Rachel and he gave her his undivided attention. 'What you were told is... true, I will admit.'

Rachel opened her mouth to speak more but Snape cut across her. 'Now,' he said loudly. 'Have you been practising closing your mind before sleeping?'

Rachel nodded confidently. 'Yes, I sometimes find it hard, but that can be normal, right?'

At seeing his expression Rachel quickly added, 'Sir.'

'Yes, like I have told you before. Learning this is a different experience for everyone. You're doing quite well for your age, I will say. Maybe you should teach it to your brother.'

It went quiet as Rachel wasn't sure what to say. 'So, let's see how much you have improved.'

Snape lifted his wand up Rachel held her hand up. 'Wait, how can you tell if I've improved since last week?' she asked frowning.

'Because your performance will be the same as it was last week but if you've practiced you will have improved, if only slightly.'

Snape lifted his wand again and pointed it at Rachel firmly. 'Legilimens,' he shouted.

This time, it didn't fell like she had improved at all. Memories flashed before her eyes. She saw herself on a boat, then walking through a long, narrow tunnel and finally swimming across a huge lake. When she opened her eyes, she didn't realise they were closed. She looked around wide-eyed. She then realised she was on her knees and she stood up quickly.

Snape was watching her with a curious expression on his face. His black eyes watched her. 'I thought you had been practising,' he said in a low voice.

'I have been,' Rachel said angrily. She wasn't angry with Snape, she was angry with herself. She let herself down with that attempt and she immediately knew it.

'Then what was that?' Snape asked, clearly not happy.

'I don't know. I must have dropped my guard.'

'You cannot do that. If someone has you and tries to get into your mind and they catch you off guard they will not give you a second chance,' Snape's voice boomed.

'Ok, alright, I get it.'

Rachel walked over slightly and got her head together. She was surprised he said nothing just then because of the way she just spoke to him but maybe he realised she was becoming angry.

'Anger is not an emotion that will help you succeed in doing this,' Snape said, his voice much calmer. 'Anger will give the person trying to enter easier access,' he explained further.

Rachel turned back to him and nodded. 'Tell me about those memories,' Snape said slowly, as he folded his arms across his chest.

Rachel thought about them again before answering. 'Well, I was on the boat with Remus. It was when we lived in Australia. He took me on a trip into the city. The swimming in the lake was at Beauxbatons, we were allowed to swim in it on weekends but I can't remember a long, narrow tunnel. It feels familiar but I don't know if it ever happened.'

'Maybe it was from a dream,' Snape suggested still watching Rachel.

She shrugged and sighed lightly. 'I don't know. I can't remember it either way.'

'Very well,' Snape said unfolding his arms. 'Let's continue. Legilimens,' he yelled at Rachel.

This time Rachel was ready for it. She was able to block him out of her mind for at least ten seconds before he gained access. He seemed, if only slightly, pleased with that effort. 'That was good,' Snape commented. 'A few more times I think.'

When their lesson ended, Snape told her about closing her mind and getting rid of all emotion beforehand. He then left quickly, breaking the silencing charm, and then noise from downstairs could now be heard. She left the room too after having a quick look around Regulus' room. It was tidy, and full of Slytherin things. Maybe that's why Snape liked this room.

She went down to the room she now shared with Hermione and she sat on the bed. She wondered if she would get any better at Occlumency. She knew had she improved since they started but then she wondered why it was so hard for Harry to learn. Maybe she should ask him if he wants to learn it. She could help him. Hermione had mentioned to her that Harry and Voldemort had a connection but she didn't go into great detail.

The more she thought about it the worse it seemed. She wondered how long it would take for Voldemort to get into this place, and how long it would take for this war to end. It seemed pointless though she was starting to learn that Voldemort was an evil person and he needed to be stopped. Rachel wanted to help but she knew Remus would have a fit about it. Once she turned seventeen though, he would no longer have a choice.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

On Christmas morning Rachel went downstairs into the living room with Hermione. Most people were in the room except for Ginny and Percy. Rachel guessed they were still sleeping. It was about seven, it was still early. She saw Remus and went straight to him. He stood up just in time to receive her hug, which almost knocked him over. She kissed him on the cheek.

'Merry Christmas, Remus,' she said happily.

'Merry Christmas,' he replied. For a moment, Rachel wondered if Remus was sad about something but it disappeared. They all sat around the room and handed out presents. Rachel loved the things she received. Remus and Sirius bought her a new dress robe. She did have one but it was old and didn't fit very well anymore. Her new one was a bright red colour.

'They'll bring out the colour of your eyes,' Remus commented. Sirius agreed and winked at her. Remus gave him a warning look.

Rachel just smiled. She opened one from Hermione and saw an elegant, silver, Muggle watch. It was in a small black gift box. Rachel smiled as she looked at it and she looked at Hermione. 'Thank you, it's beautiful.'

Hermione's cheeks went a little pink. 'You mentioned your old one broke, I was hoping you'd like it.' She smiled more than went back to opening gifts.

Rachel opened another one, which was from Harry. It was an object; a clear, round object. She wasn't quite sure what it was. It looked like a Muggle toy top. Harry was watching her. 'It's a sneakoscope,' he informed her.

'What does it do?' Rachel asked him eyeing it warily.

'It lights up and alerts you when there's someone untrustworthy around.'

Rachel thought about it quickly. It could come in handy. 'Thank you,' she said to Harry quietly.

He smiled faintly and went back to talking to Ron. She moved onto the next present which had a card with it also. She opened the card first:

_Dear Rachel,_

_I wasn't sure what to get you, so I think these will do. I hope they come in handy._

_Love Charlie._

Rachel read the note over again. It was from Charlie. She didn't expect anything from him, though she had secretly hoped. She opened the box and her gasp was audible. It wasn't what she was expecting. It was a pair of black, female, dragon-hide boots. She looked them over and took them out of the box.

'Who are they from?' Remus asked looking over at her.

'They're from Charlie,' she replied slowly.

She handed Remus the note. He read it and his face turned into worry. He seemed a little disgruntled by the note but he handed it back to Rachel and said nothing. Rachel placed the boots beside her and kept her hand on them. Suddenly, they felt very special to her.

* * *

On the way back Hogwarts Rachel shared a compartment with Hermione and the others. When she looked over at Ginny all she received was a cold stare. She looked away and tried to ignore her. Half-way through the trip Neville joined them in the compartment along with another girl, which Rachel didn't know. The sat beside Hermione and gave Rachel a curious look.

'Rachel, this is Luna Lovegood, she's in Ravenclaw, Ginny's year. And, Luna this is Rachel Potter, Harry's sister,' Hermione explained clearly.

They both shook hands quickly. 'I had heard about you,' Luna said quietly, still looking at her. 'I wonder, have they warned you about Nargles?'

Rachel frowned inwardly. What the hell was she talking about?

'Um, what's a... Nargle?' she asked unsurely.

'They're little creatures that will sometimes steal things from you or they'll just try and trick you into do something. It's never usually a good thing.'

Luna gave her a smile and look out the window. It was becoming dark and there were high clouds in the sky, which appeared to turning dark grey. Rachel looked at Luna for a little longer. She seemed... different. She was young and to Rachel she appeared curious about everything. She wondered if Luna was always like this.

When they arrived at the station all of them got a carriage together. When it started moving she looked to the front of the carriage. No-one said anything for the whole ride up to the castle. When they reached it though, Harry, Ron, Ginny and Neville walked ahead and a little faster. Rachel walked up to the steps with Hermione and Luna.

They entered the castle silently and all entered the Great Hall. Rachel was happy to be back here but she did miss Remus already. They all watched as Dumbledore stood on his podium and spoke. 'I would like to welcome everyone back for term two. I trust everyone had a great Christmas holiday and I trust we are all ready to get back to work.'

He said nothing more and the feast began. Rachel started eating immediately, she was hungry. She looked over at Harry for a moment. He was animatedly talking to Ron and others about Quidditch. She knew her brother was now Quidditch Captain. She played while at Beauxbatons but she decided not to try out here. She didn't want Harry to think he had to choose her because they were related.

When dinner ended they went up to Gryffindor Tower and Rachel immediately went to her dormitory. She unpacked some of her things and got ready for bed. She wasn't too interested in talking to anyone right now. She got into bed and wondered if anything interesting would happen this term.

* * *

The next morning when Rachel awoke she looked around. There was no-one in the dormitory. She shot up out of bed and got dressed, she looked at the time and saw that it was nine thirty, she was late. She checked her timetable and saw she had defence against the dark arts first. She grabbed her books and quickly ran to the first floor. She opened the classroom door and it went quiet.

'You're late, Miss Potter,' Snape said to her in a low voice.

'Yes, I know, I'm sorry Professor, it won't happen again.'

'See that it doesn't. Take your seat.'

Rachel nodded and quickly sat down next to Hermione. 'Why are you late?' Hermione asked quietly.

'I don't know. I just didn't wake up,' she said back.

They began their work on harder non-verbal spells and when the lesson ended Snape told her to wait behind. She walked over to his desk and waited. 'Do you know why you're late?' he asked slowly. Snape didn't look up at her, he continued writing something.

'No Sir, I just didn't wake up early enough.'

'It's your Occlumency, Miss Potter,' he stated.

'What do you mean?'

'I mean, that you successfully closed your mind before sleeping,' he said, now looking at her.

'How do you know that, Sir?'

'I have learnt this subject before, Miss Potter, and I have taught it to others, I know what I'm talking about. You should be thankful that I did not take off any points for your lateness.'

'Thank you...'

'And I think you deserve fifteen points for reaching a milestone in the subject.'

Rachel stuttered a little. 'Um, thank you Sir, can I ask why?'

'Yes, and it is because not many people have learnt it as quickly as you. I will admit that I'm impressed. But do not let this go to your head. You still need to practice and work hard on it. Once you get used to it though it will get easier,' he explained.

'Thank you,' Rachel said again.

She walked towards the door. 'Oh and Miss Potter,' he said slowly. Rachel stopped and turned back to face him. 'Your lessons will again be on Tuesday nights at eight.'

Rachel nodded and thanked him once more. She walked to the library and found Hermione at one of the tables, already doing some homework. She sat beside her. Hermione jumped a little but then faced Rachel. 'So, what happened?'

'What are you talking about?'

Hermione sighed impatiently, 'I'm talking about when Professor Snape asked you to remain behind.'

'Oh, he just wanted to talk about my Occlumency lesson. He said I'm now able to close my mind before going to sleep and he awarded me fifteen points.'

'What?' Hermione spluttered.

A few other students in the library looked up quickly at the sudden loud noise. 'He never gives Gryffindor points, not even me,' she said in shock.

Rachel just shrugged and took some of her own work out. Hermione sighed again and quickly settled back into her work. 'Is everything alright with you?' Rachel asked gently.

'Yes,' she replied. 'Well, no, actually. I like Harry, but sometimes he annoys me greatly,' she said in frustration.

'What's happened?' Rachel asked slowly. She wondered for a moment if something bad had happened or if they just had a small disagreement about something. She had already seen a few of them last term. Most of their small fights didn't last very long but if Harry was anything like her, then he would be stubborn.

'Well, at the start Harry wasn't going to take potions because Snape was teaching the subject and he only took people who get an outstanding in their O.W.L's but this year there's been a change, as you know, and Professor Slughorn does accept Exceeds Expectations for his potions class and now Harry can take the subject but he didn't have any ingredients. Slughorn gave him a spare potions book, but it's an old one.'

'I don't understand,' Rachel said frowning a little.

'It's the book that's the problem. It belonged to someone else and it's got writing in it and during Potions Harry's been following what the book says. It seems to work but it could be dangerous. He doesn't know who owned the book before,' she said exasperatedly.

Rachel wasn't quite sure what to say after hearing that. She looked at Hermione for a little longer before speaking. 'Well, have you checked the book or looked at it?'

'Yeah, and it looks fine and I checked it for jinxes and curses but there's nothing there. It's what's inside the book that worries me.'

'What if you tell someone?'

Hermione shook her head. 'Harry would probably hate me.'

'How come I have only just heard about this?' Rachel asked trying to think back to all their Potions classes.

'Well, the first night it happened it was a Tuesday night and you were with Snape. Since then I've tried to ignore it but I'm not sure it's working.'

'Well, you'll just have to trust that Harry will do the right thing, even if it takes him a bit longer.'

'Yeah, I guess.'

They both went quiet and went back to their homework. When the small break was over Rachel and Hermione attended the rest of their classes. When the day ended Rachel wondered around the castle alone. She didn't get the chance to explore much during the first term.

The longer she wondered around, the more she like being here. It was different to Beauxbatons but in a good way. The Beauxbatons castle was big, she wasn't sure if it was bigger than this one, if it wasn't it would come close though.

After a while she began to get the feeling that someone was watching her or following her. She knew the portraits around the castle could move and talk and everything but it wasn't that. It was something else. Every time she turned around she didn't see anyone behind her, if there was no-one appeared to be following.

She shook it off and walked past the Entrance Doors, she was about to keep going when she saw Harry and the others on the grounds. Well, everyone except Hermione. Rachel approached them. When she reached them they all went quiet and looked up at her.

'Harry, can I have a word?' she asked.

'Yeah,' he said without moving.

'I meant alone,' she added when he didn't move.

'Ok,' he said while getting up. They walked away from Ron, Neville, Luna and Ginny, and Harry waited to her to speak first.

'Harry, Hermione told me about your potions book. I'm surprised I only just heard about it now and I tend to agree with Hermione. I think you should get rid of it and buy a new one.'

Harry's face turned to anger. 'Since when can you tell me what to do?'

'I'm your sister and I care about you,' she said gently.

'That doesn't give you the right to poke your nose in my business. Keep out of it,' Harry said angrily. He moved away and went back over to his friends. Rachel felt a little stung. She didn't understand why he spoke to her like that; she was just trying to help him.

After a moment she turned back to the castle and went to the library. She saw Hermione in there and she walked over. 'Do you have some parchment I can borrow and a quill?' she asked quietly.

Hermione nodded and hurriedly gave Rachel some things. Rachel thanked her and went to another table. She sat at one in the back and thought about what she was going to write. She was still angry from her small talk with Harry but she wanted to do this.

She was writing a small letter to Charlie. She hadn't yet thanked him for the boots, plus she wasn't confident enough to do it, even by letter. But after her talk with Harry, the anger inside her made her feel like she could do anything. She dipped the quill in some ink and started to write:

_Dear Charlie Weasley,_

_I just wanted to thank you for the Christmas present, it was very thoughtful. I haven't worn them yet; I think I need to wait until I actually have somewhere to go. I had hoped that you'd be in England for Christmas, but I suppose a letter would do fine. Everything else has been going well. School is still the same and Remus is still he's worrying self. I will admit that I have thought about you a couple of times, and I don't really want to say it, but I would like to get to know you better. Just have to make sure Remus doesn't find out just yet but if you don't feel the same, then please let me know. Anyway, I hope you're having fun at work, and please take care of yourself._

_Love Rachel Potter._

Rachel re-read her letter a few times before making sure it was perfect. When she decided she was happy with it, she folded it and placed it in her pocket. She smiled to herself while she cleaned the quill and set it down on the desk.

'Sending a letter to your boyfriend?' asked a voice from behind her.

Rachel turned around in surprise. Theodore Nott was standing behind her. 'What the hell are you doing here?' she asked loudly.

'Shouldn't talk so loud in a library, also, I'm allowed to be in here, just like you,' he stated arrogantly.

'Well, it's none of you business who I'm writing to. You should have more respect,' Rachel said before grabbing the things from the desk and walking away from him. She placed the stuff on Hermione's desk and thanked her quickly before leaving.

She walked to the Gryffindor Tower and went to her dormitory. Hero was sitting on her bedside table pruning his feathers. She went over to him and showed him the letter. 'Take this to Charlie Weasley,' she said clearly. 

Hero hooted and Rachel wrote Charlie's name on the front. She then tied it to Hero's leg and he flew off out the window. She watched him until he was just a white dot in the sky. She walked over to her bed and lay down.

She thought about the library incident in her head a few times. What happened with Harry before was no longer bothering her. She kept thinking about Theodore. Why would he watch her or stand behind her? Why wasn't he reading something or with his friends? Why did he bother talking to her at all? She wasn't sure what to make of it but decided to let it go for now and see if anything else would happen.

* * *

On Tuesday night just before eight, Rachel made her way to Snape's office again. She walked through the dungeon and she couldn't help but notice Theodore in the same corridor. He watched as she knocked on Snape's office door and went inside.

The office looked the same as it did last time. Snape was at his desk writing. He stood up within seconds and he pointed his wand at the note. It lifted itself into the air and went through the fireplace. Rachel couldn't help but jump slightly. She was expecting it to go out the window or the door at least, not the fireplace.

She continued to wait. Snape turned his back on her and began to remove memories from his head. Rachel wondered if he was worried about nothing, she hadn't even gotten close to being inside his head. She did wonder though if there was something inside his head, a memory, that he didn't want her to see. She knew some memories were special or private but she wondered how many of those he could have.

When he turned back to face her, she knew the lesson was about to begin. 'Take out your wand,' he instructed her.

Rachel frowned. 'What for?' she asked.

'You need to learn to defend yourself against memory attacks with your wand. It's hard to do it without one and it's hard to keep pushing someone out with just your mind,' he explained.

'Ok,' Rachel said slowly. She wasn't sure if she completely understood but she was willing to try it. She held her wand at the ready and she waited. 'Legilimens,' Snape shouted at her.

She managed to keep him out of her head for about five seconds but she felt like she couldn't lift her arm, let alone get a spell out from her lips.

'You should try a non-verbal spell, Miss Potter,' Snape suggested when lifting the curse from her.

'But, I can only do simple ones, sir.'

'They can still be useful to you. But non-verbal ones will give you an advantage. It can be hard for a person trying to go through your mind to concentrate on something else at the same time, which means, if you think of a spell, jinx or curse strongly enough it will happen without much effort. You will feel the pressure of it on your brain but do not fear it, it will do you no harm, it's a good pressure.'

'OK,' she breathed heavily.

Snape lifted his wand again, 'Legilimens.'

She managed to keep him out of her head by ten seconds, five more than last time but she still did not get a spell out. She sighed in frustration. Snape noticed.

'It will take time. You improved on that try,' he said encouragingly. They tried several more times before Snape ended the lesson. Rachel had a headache when it finished, it throbbed painfully.

She left Snape's office quickly and she walked outside onto the grounds. She walked over to the lake and sat on the edge. She thought about the lesson again but she kept thinking about Theodore. She didn't really want to think about him but he kept drifting back into her mind. He wasn't bad looking but she already had her sights set on someone else.

She only just wanted to know why Theodore was standing behind her anyway. What would he want with her? She hadn't had much contact with any Slytherin's yet, except for Draco Malfoy. She didn't like him too much. She had noticed another Slytherin boy around, his was tall, black and he had beautiful slanted eyes. She liked the look of him.

Rachel shook herself out of her thoughts. Thinking about Slytherin's would only lead to trouble. She wanted to keep her focus on Charlie. She was surprised he would even look twice at her; he was a little older than her. She still wondered what Theodore wanted though and there was only one way to find out. She had to ask him.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

A few weeks Rachel visited Hogsmeade with Hermione, who had informed her that it was the only wizarding settlement in Britain. Rachel found it mildly interesting. They first went to Honeydukes, then to the Three Broomsticks. They had a butterbeer together and Rachel was enjoying it but there was something missing it. She loved having Hermione as a friend but she still wished Harry would open up to her.

Half-way through the day, Hermione saw Harry walk past them with the others. She looked furious. 'I'm going to go talk to him,' Hermione said still watching him.

'Are you sure you want to do that?' Rachel asked.

'Yes, I am. Will you be Ok?' she asked.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, I can look after myself, go talk to Harry,' she encouraged.

She watched as Hermione stood up and she put her cloak on rather forcefully before wrapping it around herself a little too tightly. Hermione didn't seem to notice anything though; she grabbed her bag and walked quickly towards the door. Rachel shook her head. She wondered why Hermione let things, especially people, get to her.

Rachel finished her butterbeer quickly and walked towards the shrieking shack. It was the one thing she came here to see. She walked up the small hill and looked beyond the fence at the large shack. It looked rigid but old and rusted. She couldn't help but smile at it slightly as she looked at it. It reminded her of something, but it was something she couldn't quite put her finger on.

'Fancy meeting you here, Potter.'

Rachel sighed heavily and turned around. Theodore Nott was standing there, looking at her. 'What do you want now?' she asked, trying her hardest to polite.

'Not much really,' he said shrugging. Rachel turned her back to him and went back to looking at the shack. She kept still as she heard Theodore stand next to her. 'Why do you keep looking at this thing?' he asked complacently.

'What's wrong with it?' Rachel asked her voice hardening.

'What's right with it?' Theodore said back. 'It's old, rusted, dilapidated and not to mention haunted.'

Rachel smiled challengingly. 'I don't think it's haunted,' she replied not taking her eyes off it.

'Oh and why do you think that?' he asked now looking at the shack himself.

Rachel shrugged. 'Well, nothing has been heard from it in a while.'

'Haunted doesn't necessarily mean there was a ghost there. It could have been a... werewolf.'

Rachel's head turned sharply to look at Theodore. She frowned a little. 'What are you talking about?' she asked quietly.

This time, Theodore shrugged. 'Nothing much. How is Lupin these days?'

What was going on? Rachel didn't know anything about the shack beyond that it was built while Remus was at school. She had never asked why. It seemed like a foolish thing not to ask. She wondered why she didn't ask 

when Hermione told her about it. To her it seemed like it was just an old building that people once thought was haunted.

'Don't play games with me,' Rachel said firmly. 'Tell me what you mean by it.'

'Well, it was built when Lupin went to school here. Do the math.'

She thought about it. Was this the place he came to transform? She wasn't sure if they had to potion back then. Maybe they didn't. She looked the building over again. It looked the same. 'The screams they heard came from Remus, it only happened on the full moon?'

Theodore nodded. 'That is correct, well done.'

'But how do you know this?'

'Lupin taught here in our third year. By the end of the year everyone found out what he was and then he was fired.'

'He wasn't fired, he resigned,' Rachel said stiffly.

'Of course he did,' Theodore said smiling at her.

Rachel decided to ignore what he said. 'Let's move closer to it,' she said moving closer to the fence.

'We're not allowed,' he stated.

'What are you, a Slytherin or Hufflepuff?' Rachel asked smiling a little.

'That's not very nice,' Theodore said smiling back. He had a mischievous glint in his eye.

They both walked through the fence and made their way down to the shack. Rachel decided to ignore what she had learnt today. She would ask Remus or Hermione about it later, but first she wanted to check the shack out. She couldn't help but wonder what it looked like inside. She wondered if it was in the same condition as the outside.

They made it to the front door after a while and Theodore took out his wand and checked the door. It wasn't locked. He pushed the door open and stood back for Rachel to go in first. 'Ladies first,' he said looking at her.

Rachel hoped he wasn't mocking her. It wasn't something she needed right now. She took a quiet deep breath and stepped over the threshold. It was similar in appearance to a house but it looked like no-one had been near it for a long time.

When first entering the shack they came into a long hallway. The floors were dusty and the wall paint was chipped and cracked. It smelt mouldy and the air was misty and clouded. Rachel thought it needed an airing out. They walked further down the hallway and saw a rickety stairway going upwards. They were dusty too. The shack seemed bare.

Rachel walked to the stairs. 'I don't think you should go up there,' Theodore said walking over to her. Rachel stopped, sighed and turned to look at him. 'Why, are you scared,' she taunted playfully.

'Never,' he replied defiantly.

She began walking up the stairs and Theodore slowly followed. She wondered if he would have the nerve to. She thought Slytherin's were supposed to be cunning, but then again, it's the Gryffindor's that are supposed to 

be brave. They reached the top quickly and they saw a few rooms leading off the hallway. 'Where do we start?' Theodore asked looking at Rachel.

She shrugged. She wasn't sure either. She walked down the new hallway and Theodore followed again. She went the first room they reached. It looked like a small bedroom. There was nothing inside it though. The floor boards in this room were dusty too. The whole place seemed like it was dusty. She thought about cleaning it with her wand but then changed her mind. It suited the place in a way; it would be a shame to change it.

They exited the room together and went to another one. It looked the same, no furniture and it was dusty. They came to the last room and it was the biggest. This room had a large four poster bed but it looked dusty also. The bed cover looked ripped and extremely aged. The curtains around it were slashed and many of the windows were broken.

Something about the room made Rachel feel sad. It gave her a sense of urgency though she didn't know what had to be done. For a moment she felt as though she was going to cry. The room reminded her of Remus. Theodore must have told her the truth then. 'This room must be the worst,' Theodore commented.

Rachel shrugged, but didn't say anything. She agreed with him but she didn't want to admit it. She walked further in to the room and walked to one of the windows. It was broken but she looked through it down to the ground. It looked like a fair way, but she didn't feel like they were that high up. She could suddenly fell her head become light.

Theodore noticed and walked over to her. 'I think we should go.'

He took a hold of her hand and led them both back downstairs and back outside. Once out Rachel pushed him away from her and he held his hands up. 'Are you alright?' he asked watching her.

Rachel took a deep, slow breath and nodded. She was starting to feel better. She closed her eyes for a moment. Everything felt like it was swimming. It made her feel a little sick before. She opened her eyes again and looked at Theodore. 'Yeah, I'm fine,' she said quietly.

'Do you want to go back to the main part of Hogsmeade?' he asked quickly.

Rachel nodded and together they walked back to where everyone else was.

When they reached the main part, Rachel spotted Hermione. She was still talking to Harry but she noticed she stopped and turned to see what Harry was looking at. He was watching Rachel walking with a Slytherin. Rachel looked at him. 'Are you going to tell everyone?' she asked.

'Tell everyone what?'

Rachel was about to say something but she saw him wink ever so slightly. She nodded and they parted. Theodore walked over to a group of Slytherin's while Rachel walked over to Hermione. She noticed the look on their faces.

'What?' she asked looking between Hermione and Harry. She then looked to Ron but he was looking somewhere else.

'What were you doing with him?' Harry asked almost outraged.

'What do you care?' she asked back.

Before he could answer she walked past them and made her way back to Hogwarts. Within a few minutes Hermione caught up with her. She was panting heavily.

'Did anything bad happen?' she asked when she got her breath back.

'No,' Rachel replied simply.

Hermione looked at her. 'Really?'

'Yes, really. We just talked.'

'About what?'

'Things. Tell me about Remus and the Shrieking Shack,' Rachel said looking ahead.

'Well, it was used by Remus during his transformations. From that, the town of Hogsmeade thought it was haunted, but as you know it isn't. The Whomping Willow in the school grounds has a tunnel underneath it which leads to the Shrieking Shack. I thought Remus would have told you about it?' she said.

'No, he hasn't told me about it,' Rachel said. 'Maybe he's scared of what I might think.'

'Well, from what I've seen, Remus cares about what you think of him. He loves you.'

'Yeah... I know he does.'

* * *

When she made it back to Hogwarts Rachel went straight up to her dormitory. She lay down on her bed and sighed loudly. She wasn't sure how she felt anymore. She wanted to know more about Remus but she didn't want to hear it from other people. She suddenly felt isolated and a little angry.

Remus had kept so much from her. At first she thought Harry was the only victim in this but he knew a lot of things that she didn't, about their parents, their friends, and about other little things; like the Whomping Willow. It upset her to know that Remus kept so much at bay.

She sighed again and looked to the window. It was getting dark. She was sure that it was almost dinner time. She got off her bed and walked to the window. As she looked into the grounds she could see Theodore with a Slytherin girl. When Theodore looked up she moved back quickly.

She could suddenly feel her cheeks growing warm. What was happening to her? She knew she didn't like Theodore, but then why was this happening?

* * *

After dinner that night, Rachel made her way back to the Gryffindor Tower. She saw Harry in there with Ginny. They seemed to be having alone time. She made her way towards the steps but stopped as Harry stood up quickly and blocked her path.

'Can we talk?' he asked slowly.

'Yeah,' Rachel said simply.

'Can we go somewhere else?'

'Such as?' Rachel asked frowning slightly.

'I know a good place, just wait here,' he said quickly before running up the stairs to the boys' dormitory. Rachel looked around and placed her hands on her hips as she waited. She looked to an armchair where Ginny was still sitting. Rachel wasn't sure if there was anything she could say to Ginny to make them get along.

'I don't believe you're really his sister,' Ginny said. Her arms were folded across her chest and her eyes were narrowed as she stared at Rachel.

'And why do you think that?' Rachel asked. She knew it was pointless getting into an argument with Ginny but it would pass the time.

'Well, for one thing you don't look a lot like Lily and also, I haven't seen any of their traits present in you,' she commented coldly.

'Well, you're hardly around, so how would you know?' Rachel retorted.

Ginny said nothing.

'Also, I know you like Harry but don't go seeing me as an enemy. I'm his sister, not his lover or anything like that. Harry and I aren't good friends but I'm hoping it will change. He doesn't need someone who's going to try and take him for their own,' Rachel said angrily.

She left the common room and decided to wait outside the tower. She didn't want to be near Ginny right now. She got a little angrier than she planned though. She thought Ginny was acting like a brat. Why did she have such a big problem with her? It was obvious she liked Harry but why did she have to focus her anger onto her? It wasn't fair.

The portrait hole opened a few minutes later and Harry came out panting. 'I thought you'd left,' he said still breathing heavily.

'No, I'm still here,' she said pointing out the obvious. 'So, where are we going?'

'To the room of requirement,' he stated.

'And what is that?'

'It's a special room at Hogwarts. It opens for you if you have a need of it and it will provide you with what you need, like equipment and things,' Harry explained.

'Right...'

Rachel followed Harry down the seventh floor corridor. She stopped suddenly when Harry did. He ran a hand over the walls and muttered to himself. For a moment, Rachel wondered if he just lost his mind. She watched with a little bit of amusement, but her face then turned to surprise as the wall before them turned into a door. She stepped back but Harry moved closer and opened the door.

'Coming in?' he questioned.

She followed Harry inside the room and she looked around. It was painted in Gryffindor colours and there was a couch near a fireplace. It looked like the common room. 'Why does it look like the common room?' she asked as she continued to look around.'

'I just thought that something familiar looking would be better,' he replied.

Harry sat down on the couch and Rachel walked over and sat near him. 'Before we talk, I just want to say that I'm sorry about how I spoke to you. I was just feeling a bit weird earlier.'

Harry just shrugged. 'Nah, its fine but what were you doing with Nott?' he asked watching his sister.

'We were just talking. I was at the shrieking shack and he turned up, it was nothing really,' she replied. 'What do you know about him?'

Harry shrugged again. 'Not much, he's a Slytherin, he can see Thestrals, he hangs around with Malfoy a bit more now than he used to. I don't know why though. Are you and he friends?'

'No, of course not, like I said we were just talking. Is this what you wanted to talk about though?' Rachel asked.

'No, I just thought I could answer any questions you have. About our parents, or other people or Hogwarts, or something.'

'Where did you get that idea?' Rachel asked.

Harry smiled. He knew he was busted. 'Alright, Hermione told me to talk to you. She thought it might be good for us to talk, about anything.'

'Ok, tell me about Sirius,' Rachel said.

'Fancy him?' Harry joked.

Rachel chuckled a little. She felt a little shocked Harry said that to her. 'No, but he was good looking once.'

Harry made a face and smiled more. 'Well, he was dad's best friend, as you know, and he was best man at their wedding. After Voldemort killed them Sirius was suspected to be the betrayer. He wasn't, of course, he wouldn't have done that to them.'

'What did happen?' she asked. Harry frowned at her a little. 'Well, I wasn't there that night and Remus hasn't really told me anything.'

'Ok, you know Pettigrew, right?'

Rachel nodded, 'Yeah.'

'Ok, well, he was the one that betrayed them. Mum and dad had a secret keeper. They used the Fidelius Charm and Sirius was originally going to be their secret keeper but Sirius decided to attempt a double-bluff, which didn't work. Pettigrew joined Voldemort and he told them where they were. Sirius thought Voldemort would come straight for him but he didn't.'

'Why didn't they use Dumbledore as being the secret keeper or Remus?' Rachel asked quietly.

'Well, dad didn't like the idea of that, he wanted it to be Sirius cause they were best friends but like I said Sirius tried to bluff and it didn't work. Dad agreed with Sirius' idea.'

'What about Remus?'

'Well, as he said a few months ago, he was suspected of being the traitor. I'm amazed they still got him to take you. I thought dad or mum would've wanted Sirius to take you but I don't know why they suspected Remus, maybe cause he's quiet, I don't know. Now that I know Remus I know he would never have done it either. And after all that happened Sirius went to Azkaban for twelve years.'

'Does he ever talk about it?'

'No, he's never talk to me about, he might have to Remus,' Harry said evenly.

'Do you think I'm anything like mum?' Rachel asked a little worriedly.

'Well, I don't remember mum much, but I have spoken to Sirius and he told me that you remind him a lot of her. He wouldn't go into too much detail but yeah, he thinks you're a lot like mum and I believe what he says, so I agree with him,' Harry said thoughtfully.

'I haven't spoken to him much, he seems nice,' Rachel commented quietly. 'Do you know much about Remus?' Rachel asked softly.

'Not much, really,' Harry said shrugging. 'I know he was bitten by Fenrir Greyback when he was a child because his father offended him somehow, and when he went to school he met dad and Sirius and they became friends. He was worried about telling them about his werewolf side but they found out, they're not stupid but they didn't abandon him. They decided to become Animagi to help him and I think it worked. When they finished school though, I don't know what Remus did; all I know is that he worked for the Order. I'm not sure who supported him. Then he worked at Hogwarts and is now working for the Order full-time.'

It went quiet in the room as Rachel thought things through. She wanted to make sure she got everything. 'Who's Fenrir Greyback?' she asked frowning.

'Most people here have heard of him. He's a werewolf and he's one of the most savage one alive. Hermione told me that he likes to make sure he's around humans when the full moon rises. He's quite vicious, I've heard and he's not one to cross.'

Rachel silently agreed with him. She wondered why Remus never told her any of this. She wanted to know things about him. He was like a father to her, but as time went on Rachel was starting to learn that she hardly knew anything about him.

The silence between them became heavier. Rachel wasn't sure if she wanted to learn anything else new today. She had already learnt a lot about Remus and she wasn't sure if she could handle anymore. She found out more about Remus today then she had her whole life so far.

'Why do you think Remus hasn't told me any of this?' Rachel asked. She was looking at the floor, almost lost in her own thoughts.

'Well, maybe he cares about you too much,' Harry said.

'That doesn't make any sense,' Rachel said back frowning.

'Yeah, it does,' Harry started. 'I think he doesn't want to hurt you. He wants you to see him a certain way and maybe he thinks you won't love him anymore if he tells you about his past and stuff. Maybe Remus doesn't want to scare you.'

'Why would I be hurt or scared?'

'Well, he's a werewolf and maybe he's scared that what he could tell you about himself would scare you and he doesn't want you to feel bad about anything, and that includes things about mum and dad. He wants to protect you.'

'But he can't do that much longer. I'm... we're almost seventeen,' Rachel stated.

'True, but Remus raised you. He probably still sees you as his little girl not an adult.'

'You know, you almost sounded like Hermione saying that,' Rachel commented smiling.

'Really? Well, I must be getting better at this.'

'At what?'

'Giving advice or whatever, people normally go to Hermione.'

'Well, this was Hermione's idea,' Rachel reminded Harry.

'She doesn't have to know that it went well, considering.'

Rachel smiled. She felt happy that she and Harry could talk without one of them getting angry about something. Besides, it had been a while since their last proper talk. Rachel knew that getting to know Harry would take time but she still felt like it was going to slow. She wanted things to happen now. She didn't want to wait.

'So, we're not enemies?' Rachel asked unsurely.

'Of course we aren't, but didn't you ask me that last time?'

Rachel shrugged. 'I'm just checking.' She was just checking and she knew they weren't exactly friends but they were getting there. They didn't start off to well in the beginning but now Rachel felt like they were getting somewhere and it was starting to go well.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

A few weeks later, things had improved more with Harry and Rachel was happy about it, but she still felt like there was an unusual uneasiness between them. It had only been three weeks but Rachel now sometimes sat with Harry and friends between classes. After classes she made sure she had something else to do. The last thing she wanted to do was to annoy Harry and hang around him all the time.

She also hadn't contacted Remus yet. A part of her wanted to immediately send him and angry letter asking why he hadn't told her anything but when she slowed down and thought it through she eventually realised that it wouldn't do any good being angry at him. Remus did what he thought was right at the time. Rachel still thought he should have been a little more open though.

She was also a little disappointed that she hadn't yet heard back from Charlie. She figured he must be busy with work or something. She was greatly hoping that she didn't make a fool of herself telling him that she would like to get to know him better. Maybe he already had someone special?

Things with Theodore though seemed to be getting weirder. Instead of talking to her, he would sometimes sit behind her in the library or stare at her subtly during class or something similar. She wasn't sure if it meant that he was interested in her or if he was just strange, or doing it for some other reason. They hadn't spoken since the day at Hogsmeade.

Rachel sighed as she sat up a little straighter. She rubbed the back of her neck with her hand. She yawned slightly. It was only her morning break and she was tired. She still had three classes left. She looked at her watch and gasped. She shot out of her chair and grabbed her things before running to the defence against the dark arts classroom. She made just in time. Everyone was walking into the room.

She walked in the classroom last and looked around. Her face fell slightly as she noticed that Hermione was sitting with Ron. She looked around the room and noticed that Harry was sitting alone. She walked over slowly. 'Do you mind if I sit with you?' she asked him smiling a little.

'Yeah, sure, it's Ok,' he said quickly.

Rachel thought he sounded a little nervous. Was it about sitting with her? 'Thanks,' she muttered as Snape walked into the room.

She sat down and everyone in the room went quiet as Snape walked to the front. He looked around at the students. 'Everyone take out your books and turn to page five hundred and thirty seven,' Snape said coldly.

The room filled with the rustling noise of books and pages and they were being turned. They turned to a page that contained information about the Chimera. Rachel first thought it was a lion but then she looked closer. She hoped she never had to face one of those.

'Tell me what a Chimera looks like, without looking down, Mr Thomas?' Snape asked looking in the Gryffindor's directions. Dean hadn't even opened his book yet. His face was full of confusion. Hermione was jumping in her seat with her hand in the air, wanting to give the answer.

Dean cleared his throat a little. 'Um, it looks like a lion,' he said hesitantly.

'What else does it look like, Mr Nott,' Snape asked then turning his direction to one of the Slytherin tables.

Rachel turned and looked at Theodore. For a moment, she thought he winked at her but it must have been the light. She shook her head a little and watched him, along with the rest of the class, answer the question.

'The Chimera has a lion's head, a goat's body, and it has either a dragon or serpent tail,' he answered confidently.

'Good, Mr Nott. Twenty points for Slytherin.'

Many groans that went around the room belonged to the Gryffindor's, Rachel felt the same. She did notice that all the points that Snape gave out went to Slytherin and not Gryffindor. Snape then turned back to the class and looked around for someone else to pick. He looked to the Gryffindor's again.

'What is their classification, Miss Patil?'

Parvati looked up at she heard her name called. She looked at Snape is surprise. She stayed quiet. 'Miss Patil, from now on, instead of playing palms with Miss Brown, perhaps you should concentrate on the class you are in right now.'

Rachel looked over at Parvati, her face was pink. She looked down at her lap, embarrassed. A few of the Slytherin's snickered to themselves but Snape acted like he didn't hear them. Rachel wasn't quite sure what to think. He was being unnecessarily cruel, just because he could.

'Mr Zabini, why don't you tell me the classification,' Snape said in an almost bored voice. Rachel frowned a little as she watched Snape. He was acting like he was talking to a group of five year olds.

'It has a classification of five x's,' he replied.

'Very good, Mr Zabini, another twenty points for Slytherin.'

'What if a Gryffindor answered the question? You wouldn't give them twenty points,' Ron called out from his table angrily.

Snape's black eyes fastened upon Ron, they blazed furiously. 'Mr. Weasley, I think you should join me in here again later for a detention and we'll see if you can keep your mouth shut then,' he said dangerously.

The room went quiet and Rachel looked at Ron, as did Harry. Ron's ears were turning a deep shade of red. He looked back down at his text-book in disgust and muttered something incoherent. Snape's lip curled and he then looked around the room again.

'Since you're so eager to talk Mr. Weasley, perhaps you will be able to answer one of my questions,' he said clearing his throat. 'The Chimera's eggs are classified as...?'

Ron went to look at his book but Snape flicked his wand lazily and the book snapped shut loudly, the sound echoing the room. Ron seemed to turn redder, if that were possible. 'I don't know,' he mumbled.

'No, I didn't think so.'

Rachel turned as she heard Harry take a breath and she quickly kicked him in the shins, she knew he was about to say something back and get himself into trouble. He gasped loudly and Snape turned to them. 'Have something to add, Mr. Potter?'

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Harry shake his head. Snape's black eyes then met Rachel's. She looked back even though she knew he could use Legilimency right now. Snape seemed too paused for a long moment before walking back to the front of the room and looking around at everyone. 'So, who wants to give me the answer?'

No-one in the class moved. Hermione's hand was still waving around in the air but Rachel hesitantly raised her hand. Snape's eyes snapped back to her. 'Yes, Miss. Potter?'

'The Chimera's egg is classified as a Class A Non-Tradable Materials,' she said clearly.

Snape's lip seemed to curl again ever so slightly. 'That is... correct, Miss. Potter… five points for Gryffindor.'

All the Gryffindor's turned to face Rachel. She just shrugged; she wasn't sure why Snape would give her points and no-one else in her house. Maybe he liked her, though she couldn't imagine why. Rachel then just felt like cold water had been poured down her spine. Snape and her mother used to be friends and she looked just like her mother, well, except her hair. Maybe when Snape looked at her, he saw Lily.

She didn't know why she didn't think of it before. She was brought back to the class by Harry kicking her. She knew he only did it to get back at her. She frowned at him but said nothing. Snape finally looked away from Rachel, and looked to the rest of the class again.

He began to tell them more about the Chimera. When the bell rang throughout the school, he told them to write an essay about the Chimera, its description, its place in history and wizards who have fought it. Rachel knew that all people that tried failed, except one. She found it amazing that someone would kill it at all, but she didn't think it was worth it. The person died from exhaustion afterwards. Why go and kill it in the first place then?

She packed her bag and headed for the door. 'Miss. Potter, a word,' Snape said before she reached the door.

Rachel sighed softly and turned back into the room. She walked to his desk and waited. He was writing her a small late note for her next class. 'I think I should increase your Occlumency lessons,' he stated.

'Why?' Rachel asked moving closer.

'Because you are doing very well at the subject and the more lessons you do the more advance you'll become and it will happen quicker. The quicker you can learn this the better.'

'Why?' Rachel asked again.

'Because then it will give you more time to practice and get used to doing it. You could also devote some time to making fake memories twisted with a form of truth. I'm very interested to see if you can do it.'

Rachel nodded. 'Ok, when?' she asked quietly.

'I would like to make it twice a week. Keep Tuesdays and now Thursdays, it will start tonight. Be in my office at eight, the usual time. If it goes well, I'll extend it to three times a week but if it interrupts your schoolwork I will cut it down again.'

'It will be fine,' Rachel assured him.

'Good. Take this to your next class. I will see you at eight.'

Rachel nodded her head and muttered her thanks before leaving the classroom. She walked to the History of Magic classroom and entered. She walked over to a table and sat next to Hermione. Professor Binns didn't even notice that she was there. She looked at the small note Snape gave her. She had to admit, she liked his writing. It was small and slanted. It was quite elegant. She folded the note gently and placed it in her pocket before taking out her books for this class.

'Is everything alright?' Hermione whispered.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, Snape just wanted to increase the lessons. Now have to go Thursdays too,' she whispered back.

Hermione gave her a sympathetic look before giving Binns her full attention. Rachel opened her own books to the right page and began taking notes too.

* * *

Later that night, Rachel walked to Snape's office once again. She knocked on the door and entered before he had much time to tell her to enter. She closed the door behind her and stood in front of his desk. She waited but Snape was quicker this time. He looked her over quickly before starting.

'Something wrong, Miss Potter?'

Rachel frowned slightly. She hated this subject sometimes. 'No, I just… I'm wondering if you're nicer to me because I look like my mother.'

Her statement seemed to shock Snape who went rigid for a moment before remembering to breathe. 'Miss. Potter, I will say that that is quite inappropriate. I do not treat you any differently to anyone else. Your mother has nothing to do with this.'

Rachel opened her mouth to say more but Snape cut across her. 'Now, I suggest you take out your wand and ready yourself.'

She sighed heavily and took out her wand. She kept in front of her and waited for Snape to attack her. It eventually came, 'Legilimens.'

Once again, Rachel could see her memories flooding her mind rapidly. When she felt the pressure released she realised she was kneeling on the floor with her hands over her ears and she had been screaming. She stood up and looked at Snape. He looked livid.

'I thought you were improving?' he said sharply.

She didn't know what to tell him. She shrugged. 'I don't know. Usually when we do this I'm free of most emotions but at the moment I'm… I'm… I don't know how I'm feeling.'

Snape turned his back on her. 'Is this to do with the friendship I had with your mother?'

Rachel shrugged. 'I don't know… maybe. I just want to know why you seem different to me, sir.'

He kept his back to her. 'I don't know either. I like said, I'm not treating you any differently. Perhaps from this you are the one seeing things differently.'

Rachel sighed again. 'Is there anything you can tell me? I will keep it to myself, I promise, sir,' she added.

This time, Snape sighed. 'I met your mother when we were children. I told her she was a witch but she didn't believe me until she got her letter from Hogwarts. She went to Gryffindor and I went to Slytherin. Despite that, we remained friends until our fifth year. I did something horrible.'

Snape paused. 'That is all I am telling you. If you breathe a word of it I may not control my actions.'

'Why does it matter though?' Rachel asked.

She didn't understand why people couldn't know. Snape turned to face her again and he placed his wand on his desk. He lifted the left sleeve of his robes and Rachel gasped a little. There was an inky black, Dark Mark on 

his arms. After a few seconds Snape pulled his sleeve back down. She wasn't sure what to think after seeing that.

'Does Dumbledore know?' she asked quickly.

'Yes, I am a spy for the Order, though I am sure that some people do not believe it.'

Rachel remained quiet. She wasn't prepared for what was going to happen next though. She yelped in surprise and dropped her wand as Snape advanced on her swiftly and pulled her close to him. He placed his wand to her temple and drew a few memories out from her head. Rachel struggled in his grip for a moment before he released her.

He remained standing close to her. Rachel looked up at him. 'What did you do?' she breathed heavily.

Snape seemed to regain himself and he moved away from Rachel quickly. He placed the memories he had taken into a small vial and he placed it within his robes. Rachel watched it but she couldn't remember what the memoires were.

'I can't… remember,' she stuttered.

'I think that will be the end of the lesson. You may leave. Don't be late next Tuesday.'

'But you only did it once.'

'I know, Miss Potter, but it took a lot out of you. I think you should practice alone again,' he said moving to sit at his desk.

Rachel frowned heavily and picked up her wand and placed it back within her robes. She walked to the door and left, unaware that Snape's black eyes were following.

* * *

Half-way through the second term Rachel was starting to think of Hogwarts as home. She was still confused about her last lesson with Snape but she decided that he was right. She was too emotional for that lesson, though she had trouble remembering why.

She sighed a little and watched as Hermione looked up at her frowning. 'What?' she asked a little annoyed.

'Why are we doing this homework now, it's not due for three weeks,' Rachel said slowly.

Hermione's eyes widened as though she were just offended. 'You're quite like Harry. He likes putting homework off too, maybe you should join them.'

'Relax Hermione, I was just saying. I'm sorry,' she added quickly.

'Fine. So, are you going to do this with me?' she asked stiffly.

Rachel nodded quickly. 'Yes, where are we up to?'

'Goblins in the thirteenth century. I know it's a long topic but the sooner it's done the sooner we can do other things.'

'Like more study?' Rachel asked smiling.

Hermione looked at her and her mouth twitched a little before she looked down again and starting writing. Rachel couldn't help it. She burst out laughing and didn't stop until Hermione gave her another stern look.

They both got to work but were disrupted not long afterwards. Harry and the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team came thundering into the room. Hermione looked at them in annoyance but no-one payed attention. Rachel looked over at them too. Most of them didn't look too happy.

'What happened?' Rachel asked.

Harry ignored her but Alicia Spinnet walked over and sat beside her at the table. 'They're not happy. Demelza was injured and we now need another chaser by tomorrow afternoon.'

Alicia stood up heavily and headed for the locker room. She wondered why they didn't go there in the first place. Before Harry could leave Rachel ran over to him. 'I heard you need a chaser,' she said slyly.

'Yeah, so?' he said annoyed.

'I could help,' she said softly.

She then had Harry's attention. 'You don't play Quidditch,' he told her frowning.

'Not here, but at Beauxbatons I did.'

'What position?' he asked still looking at her.

'Chaser,' she replied. 'I played seeker a couple of times but I lost and I played keeper once but I got knocked out half-way through the match.'

Harry seemed to do some quick thinking. 'Alright, but I need to see how you fly. I'll see you at the pitch before class tomorrow.'

Rachel nodded and smiled a little as Harry walked up to his dormitory. When she sat back down at the table she found Hermione looking at her in surprise. 'What?' Rachel asked looking confused.

'You didn't tell me you played Quidditch,' she said slowly.

Rachel just shrugged. 'I didn't tell Remus until the beginning of my fourth year there.'

'Why?'

'Well, he did ask me not to play. He thinks it's too dangerous and it can be but it's a school. I don't think someone will die during the game at school.'

'How did he take it when you told him you were the teams' chaser?' Hermione asked watching her intently.

She shrugged again. 'He wasn't too happy but he told me if I got hurt he would make sure I was off the team,' said Rachel.

Hermione smiled faintly and went back to her essay and Rachel joined her. When they finished it was almost three in the morning. She would have to be up again in a few hours. All she hoped was that she was still able to play like she could at Beauxbatons.

* * *

The next morning Rachel woke up with someone pushing her. It was Hermione. 'What?' she asked sitting up and rubbing her head.

'Harry's waiting for you on the Quidditch pitch. These are the robes, they're Alicia's, she said they should fit Ok.'

'Doesn't she need them?' Rachel asked still feeling groggy.

Hermione shook her head. 'No, Alicia said this was her spare or emergency pair. She said you could borrow them. She said there was no hurry to get your own,' Hermione added before walking back to her own bed. Rachel got out of bed and changed as quickly as she could before leaving the castle and running towards the Quidditch pitch.

As she ran towards the Quidditch pitch she wondered if they always wore the robes when it was just practice. When she reached the pitch she looked around. She saw Harry near a goalpost and she ran to him. She was panting heavily when she reached him.

'I'm sorry,' she gasped out.

'We only have forty-five minutes now,' Harry said quickly.

'It'll be enough,' Rachel assured him.

Harry didn't look impressed still but he said nothing. 'What broomstick do you have?' he asked looking at it frowning.

'It's a comet two sixty,' she replied.

'That will have to do,' Harry said moving a little.

Rachel looked at Harry's broom and noticed a firebolt. 'Did you buy that?' she asked her eyes wide.

Harry couldn't help but smile. 'No, Sirius bought it for me.'

'Lucky,' Rachel whispered.

She mounted her broom and took off into the sky and Harry followed. He threw the quaffle to her which she caught with one hand.

'So, what do you want me to do?'

'I want you to fly over here to the goalposts and see how many you get past me. We'll have thirty attempts,' Harry yelled over to her.

Rachel steadied herself on her broom and licked her lips. It has been a while since she played or practiced her Quidditch game but she was sure she could still play well enough for a school team. She shifted on the broom slightly; she found the Hogwarts Quidditch robes a little bulky. Didn't they find them hard to play in?

She moved quickly and went forwards on her broom. She swerved from side to side and she noticed how intensely Harry watched her. She threw the quaffle towards the left hand hoop but Harry reached it and caught it before it flew past him. Rachel felt annoyed by that.

'I'm not impressed yet,' Harry yelled as he threw the quaffle back to her. Rachel flew away a little with her back to Harry and she gathered her thoughts into a single coherent though. She knew she had to do something to shake Harry a little. She wondered if she could do it.

She turned back around and flew towards Harry moving side to side once again and she pretended the throw the ball to the left hoop again, which Harry fell for. Rachel moved quickly and threw the quaffle into the right hoop instead. Harry stopped and tried to turn quickly but he was too slow.

'How'd you do that?' he asked frowning.

'Well, I pretended to the throw it that way but I didn't let the quaffle go.'

'That's mean,' Harry said as he went to retrieve the quaffle. Rachel smiled as she waited. She just then realised how much she missed this. Soaring into the air without a care and feeling the wind through your hair and on your face. It almost felt like being at Beauxbatons again. She sighed and shook those thoughts from her head as Harry came back.

After another twenty-eight attempts they landed on the ground and walked up to the castle together. 'So, how did I do?' Rachel asked looking at Harry.

He shrugged. 'You got most through and even the ones you didn't were quite good attempts.' Harry stopped walking and so did Rachel when she noticed. She looked at Harry who seemed to be making a difficult decision and he sighed. 'Ok, I'll let you play chaser later this afternoon, and after that I'll keep you as a reserve but I will have to make sure everyone knows that I chose you fairly.'

He started walking again and Rachel did too. 'Who else did you have in mind for this?' she asked slowly.

'Well, I had a couple of Gryffindor's in mind. Dean was one, and Cormac, even though he can be quite big-headed.'

'What do you mean "quite big-headed"? He is big-headed, everyone knows it. Though some people will argue that he's just passionate about Quidditch,' Rachel said smiling.

Harry laughed. 'I wouldn't call it passion, I would call it rage.'

Rachel then laughed herself and Harry laughed harder. She stopped for a moment as she held her side. She did watch the last Quidditch match and she did notice Cormac in the stands; he seemed a little more than enthusiastic about Gryffindor winning. Rachel found it quite funny, though Hermione thought it was stupid. Rachel knew that Hermione wasn't fond of Quidditch like Harry, Ron and a lot of other people in the school were.

They both went to the locker rooms and showered before going back to Gryffindor Tower. Rachel spotted Alicia in one corner talking to a couple of friends. She approached her slowly. Alicia and her friends turned to her and watched. Alicia smiled a little.

'Did Harry let you on the team?' she asked still smiling.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, then he'll keep me as a reserve.'

'That's great,' Alicia said beaming.

'Um, what about your Quidditch robes?' Rachel asked slowly. 'Do you want them back?'

'Oh, you can keep them. Do they fit Ok?'

'Yeah, they fit great.'

'Good, like I said you can keep them. I do have another spare pair. The ones I gave you are a little bit older, and I'm sure you could get some new ones if you wanted,' she said kindly.

Rachel smiled. 'Thanks.'

Rachel walked up to her dormitory and placed the robes on her bed. She grabbed her books and walked to her first class. Harry had informed her that Quidditch matches were not usually held on Fridays but they had a game to make up for and now Rachel could feel pressure on her. She was new to the team and she didn't want to let them down.

She also knew that Ginny was now on the team. In a way, Rachel didn't like it. She didn't want Ginny to get in her way. She knew Ginny didn't like her and would love to humiliate her. She already didn't believe that she was Harry's sister. For a short moment she wondered how far Ginny would go.

Her first lesson today was Charms. She entered the classroom and sat beside Hermione. Rachel actually like Charms class. It was usually fun and entertaining. She looked around the room and her eyes locked onto Theodore's and she looked away quickly. She took a few notes before looking up again. For some reason, she couldn't concentrate.

She kept thinking about Charlie. She couldn't imagine why he hadn't written back to her. She knew he was in Romania and he probably had plenty of work to do but still, she wanted to know if he was interested in her at all. He was eight years older than her; she could understand if he wasn't interested at all. Maybe she read the signals wrong. Maybe he was just being friendly and nice to her. Every time she thought back over the letter she wrote him the more embarrassed she felt. He must think she's the biggest idiot.

She sighed a little and got back to work quickly and tried to forget it. Her next lesson was Astronomy. She walked there with Hermione, but nothing was said between them. Hermione looked at her every now and then but she remained quiet. But somehow, Rachel knew she wanted to say something. There looked to be something bothering her.

The lesson after that was Herbology. Rachel was never good at this subject. She wondered why she chose to do it though. She wasn't sure if she would need it. Her last class of the day was Potions. She was starting to enjoy this class. She did find Slughorn quite overwhelming but she was sure that it was just his personality.

During this lesson she couldn't help but look over at the Slytherin's. All of them were working. Her eyes wondered over Draco, Blaise, Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle but then came to rest on Theodore who was looking back at her. She didn't look away this time, she held his gaze. He smiled lightly but Rachel just kept staring. After a moment she heard someone clear their throat and it was Slughorn. Rachel quickly looked back down into her cauldron and kept making her potions.

Thoughts ran through her mind again. She felt like things were unravelling and there wasn't anything she could do to stop it right now. She was learning new things about Remus, Harry, her parents, and it was starting to become a lot to take in. She now realised that she didn't really know anyone that well. She wanted to talk to Remus, but she would wait until the Easter holidays. She wanted to talk to him in person. It was the best way to do it.

* * *

Later that afternoon Rachel stood in the Gryffindor locker room and she was breathing funny. It had been a few months since her last match. She kept having thoughts of falling off her broom in front of everyone, or dropping the quaffle or something worse. The last thing she wanted was to make a fool of herself. She shook her hands as they began to shake and she took a few deep breaths.

She looked around her quickly as Ritchie and Jimmy sat beside her and Alicia stood in front of her. 'Relax, you'll be fine.'

Rachel tried to smile but only managed to lift the corners of her mouth. Questions ran through her mind with her fears. What if I fail? What if I let the team down? What if I play badly? What if they won't want me on the team anymore?

Rachel moved her head side to side and looked between Ritchie Coote and Jimmy Peakes, who were sitting on either side of her. They were looking at her as though wondering if she were real. 'I'm sure you'll do fine,' Ritchie said smiling.

'Yeah,' Jimmy agreed. 'I'm sure you have natural talent like Harry.'

Alicia walked over to them again quickly. 'Ok, you two move away.' Alicia began shifting Ritchie and Jimmy away from her. 'She's nervous enough without you two talking about Harry's natural talent.'

They moved away quickly and Alicia sighed then walked to her locker to tie her hair up. Hearing that her brother had natural talent didn't make Rachel feel any better. It doesn't mean it would run in the family. She has played before but she felt no pressure there.

Rachel sighed herself and stood up. She looked in the mirror and moved her head a little. Her green eyes were bright and she had already tied her long black hair up into a high ponytail. She closed her locker door and picked up her broom. She looked it over. She was ready, but she was still nervous. She looked up as she heard someone giggle. It sounded a lot like Ginny.

She looked over near Harry's locker and saw Harry and Ginny standing there together. They were both ready for the match too, but Rachel thought Ginny had her mind on something else right now. She moved to stand closer to Harry and he smiled slightly.

'Are you going to wish me luck?' Ginny asked him quietly.

'Why? You should wish it to me,' Harry said smiling.

Ginny shrugged. 'You don't need it.'

Harry smiled but said nothing. Ginny put her arms around Harry and she placed her hands on the back of Harry's head. She pulled him to her and she kissed him gently on the lips. Rachel was still watching them. For a split second she felt angry. Ginny was throwing herself at Harry and Rachel knew it. She continued to watch as Harry stroked Ginny's cheek gently with his hand.

They broke apart quickly when the announcement was called about the match starting. Harry looked at Rachel but he said nothing. His face went a little pink. Rachel looked to Ginny then but she just pouted at her, as though saying, I won.

Rachel shook her head and stood beside Alicia, who looked at her and smiled encouragingly. She still felt nervous but she decided to hold it in. She looked over to Ron quickly who was the keeper and he was glaring at Ginny still. Rachel wondered if he liked the idea of his best friend and his sister together. She thought he looked almost green.

The whole team moved to the entrance and hoped on their brooms. When the horn sounded they all kicked off the ground and fly into the air onto the pitch. Rachel followed Katie and they all got into position. Alicia sat in the middle of the chasers. Rachel was glad to stay away from Ginny. She looked across from them at the Slytherin team. She had learnt that the three chasers were Urquhart, Vaisey and Warrington. The three of them were big and looked mean. She didn't think this game was going to go well.

Madam Hooch flew around them when they were all in position and she yelled to the two captains to keep the game clean, but Rachel didn't think that was likely. She looked to the Gryffindor stands and saw Hermione wave at her. She waved back and smiled nervously. She turned back and watched Madam Hooch and within a few seconds she blew the whistle and the game began. The students around the pitch became loud and boisterous and were shouting out for their team.

The quaffle flew into the air and Alicia moved forwards and caught it before Urquhart could take it. Both Rachel and Ginny followed and they passed the quaffle to each other a few times before they reached the goalposts and Alicia stopped and threw the quaffle towards the middle hoop. The Slytherin keeper had panicked and moved the wrong way.

Gryffindor went up by ten points and the Gryffindor students got louder. The next few points were once again scored by Alicia. Rachel managed to get a couple in, as did Ginny. When they score had become sixty-forty in favour of Gryffindor, Rachel looked around quickly to see where Harry was but he was still in the same position, evidently he hadn't seen the snitch yet.

She looked back just in time to catch the quaffle and she headed towards the Slytherin's goalposts. She kept going even though two Slytherin chasers appeared beside her. Rachel tried to look around for help but she didn't find it. Alicia was back at their posts and was trying to catch them but she couldn't see Ginny anywhere. She yelled out as Warrington grabbed the quaffle from her and almost pushed her off her broom as well. However, it didn't go unnoticed by Hooch who blew the whistle and everyone stopped flying for a moment.

She flew over to them. 'Gryffindor gets one free shot at goal,' she announced.

The Slytherin chasers weren't happy to hear it and they moved closer to Hooch. 'What the hell for?' Vaisey yelled in Hooch's face.

'One more outburst and it will become more,' she said firmly. 'Warrington almost pushed Potter off her broom and that is not allowed,' she yelled back to him. She took off and blew the whistle again. Rachel took the quaffle and moved into position. She wished Alicia could take this shot. Madam Hooch blew her whistle and Rachel threw the quaffle as hard as she could towards the right hoop. To her amazement it went in.

She smiled broadly to herself but she still felt a little shaken. She had been almost pushed off her broom, that had never happened before. It scared her, she could have fallen to the hard ground and cracked her head open. She flew back into position and the game started again.

Suddenly, Rachel saw what looked to be a blur whiz past her, but then she realised it was Harry. He might have seen the snitch. Rachel didn't think she would be able to play seeker, the small ball seemed too swift for her. She didn't turn back quick enough though as a ball came towards her and hit her on the side of the head. She swayed on her broom and her head began to spin. Everything looked fuzzy.

Rachel looked to see what it was that hit her. She looked to the ground and saw the quaffle lying there. She must have been close to the ground. She felt her leg slip from the broom and she felt it disappear, like it melted.

Then everything went black.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

Rachel opened her eyes and looked around. The room was quiet, very quiet. The white walls glowed at her from the ceiling. She blinked a few times and inhaled sharply. Her head still hurt a little. She sat up slowly and blinked many times in succession. The room was a little bright; there was light pouring in from the windows. She wondered how long she had been out.

Within the hour Alicia came in the hospital wing and walked over to Rachel's bed. She summoned a chair and sat down. 'How are you feeling?' Alicia asked softly.

Rachel shrugged. 'My head still hurts.'

'Well, that may last a while,' Madam Pomfrey said walking past them.

Alicia chuckled a little and she stood up. 'Where are you going?' Rachel asked a little sleepily.

'I'm going to get Harry and Hermione; they've been coming down here every hour to see if you're awake. It would have been every five minutes if Pomfrey hadn't told them off; she said they were harassing her.'

Rachel chuckled and watched Alicia leave. She could imagine Hermione coming down here often, they were friends but she was surprised that Harry was coming down too. She knew things were better between them but it still surprised her.

She only had to wait for a few minutes before Hermione came running into the room and she got a stern look from Madam Pomfrey. She gave a sheepish look and reached Rachel's bed quickly. She sat down in the chair that Alicia summoned last time and she beamed at Rachel. 'Are you feeling alright?'

'Yeah, my heads still hurting but Pomfrey said it would last for a while.'

Hermione kept smiling. 'Do you remember what happened?' she asked.

At that moment Harry walked into the hospital wing and sat beside Hermione after summoning another chair. Rachel thought back. 'I don't remember much. I remember turning and something hit me and I felt dizzy and confused.'

The room went quiet. 'So, what did happen?' Rachel asked looking between Hermione and Harry.

It was Harry that spoke. He cleared his throat loudly. 'Um, well, you were hit in the head by the quaffle. Ginny threw it at you and yeah. Everyone went silent when it happened and Ginny got a few detentions for it. McGonagall wasn't impressed with her attacking her own team mate.'

'She deliberately hit me in the head with the quaffle?' Rachel asked slowly. She wasn't sure she heard correctly.

'Yeah,' said Harry nodding. 'I don't understand it. She won't talk about it but I am getting the impression that she doesn't like you.'

'Oh, really Harry,' said Hermione turning to look at him.

'How long have I been out?' Rachel asked ignoring what was just said.

'About a week, today's Thursday too by the way. We only have two weeks of school left and don't worry, I made sure to get your homework for you,' Hermione said quickly.

'Thanks,' Rachel said quietly. She wasn't surprised that Hermione remember to get all of her homework.

'Snape asked about you,' Harry said darkly.

Rachel looked at him quickly. Harry's expression was impassive. Rachel wasn't sure what to say to that. She didn't think Snape would care but then her thoughts went back to her looking like her mother. It was starting to reveal itself. It scared her, she had to admit. She found Snape mysterious but not scary. She noticed a lot of students were weary of him but Rachel didn't see any need to be.

'Did he say anything else?' she asked slowly.

'No,' Harry said shifting in his seat. Hermione did the same thing quickly before standing up. 'I have to do some research. I'll be back to visit you later, unless you're not here.'

Both Rachel and Harry watched Hermione leave. Rachel thought she was leaving a little too fast. She knew Hermione loved to study and do homework but there must have been another reason. Harry leaned closer to Rachel in his seat.

'So, what's going on with you and Snape?' he whispered.

There it was, the reason. He wanted to know about Snape and their lessons together. 'There isn't anything going on,' she said quickly. 'He's teaching me Occlumency.'

'Yeah I heard but why is he teaching it to you.'

Rachel shrugged. She hadn't really thought about why she had to learn it. 'Dumbledore thought it would be a good idea, in case anything happened I guess.'

'Like what? It doesn't make any sense. You don't have a connection with Voldemort, I do.'

'I know,' Rachel said a little louder than intended. 'But it's just in case. You sometimes need to plan away head, for you know, just in case. And yeah, I know it doesn't make much sense but I'm not doing to badly at the subject. Snape said I should try and teach it to you,' she added quietly.

Harry made a face. 'Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Just because you can do it in class doesn't mean you'd be able to do it if attacked.'

'Yeah, maybe, but still, that's why I'm practising. Do you practice at all anymore?' Rachel asked looking into Harry's eyes.

He shook his head. 'No, I can't do it at all. I find it hard to get rid of emotion, especially when something or someone else's presence is there.'

It went quiet again and not much else was said. Rachel thought about it. Harry was right though, it couldn't be easy to do something within your own mind if someone else is in there too. She wondered though if Harry really meant to divulge so much information to her like that, or if it came out in his anger or frustration. She knew he didn't like Snape and thinking about it couldn't have been nice either.

She gave him a small, but weak smile. She didn't know what to say to him. She wasn't sure if there was really anything she could say, well, not something that would be comforting anyway. Harry left the hospital wing after half-an-hour and Hermione did come back when she finished her homework. She informed her about the rest of the Quidditch match and how everyone was feeling.

She was happy to hear that they still won, even though one of their chasers was knocked out, on purpose. She was stunned that Ginny got off that lightly. She deliberately attacked her own team mate, there had to be a rule against that.

* * *

Later that night, Rachel woke up just after midnight. She was having trouble sleeping. She didn't like the beds in the hospital wing too much. They weren't always the most comfortable, especially when lying on it for so long. After twenty minutes of just laying there, the doors to the hospital wing opened and Rachel sat up in bed quickly. She looked around in alarm and realised that she was alone.

She watched as a dark figure walked towards her bed but her fear quickly turned to annoyance as the figure before her moulded itself into Theodore. He walked over to her bed and sat down. He just looked at her. 'What are you doing here?' Rachel asked lying down a little bit.

'Just thought I'd come and see how you were,' he said lightly.

'How you'd get in here?'

'I opened the doors and walked in,' he said looking at her confused.

Rachel rolled her eyes, 'No, I meant, how did you get in here without anyone seeing you. You're supposed to be in bed.'

Theodore smiled a little and Rachel decided to ignore it. Theodore shrugged. 'Well, I'm in Slytherin and I know my way around,' he said as though it explained everything. He sat back in his chair and kept his eyes on Rachel.

'Did you see the match?'

He nodded. 'Yeah, of course. Nice fall you took,' he said smiling a little more.

'Yeah, thanks. I don't think Ginny likes me too much.'

Theodore chuckled very faintly. 'Yeah, looks like it.'

It went quiet between them. Rachel wondered if he was just here because he couldn't sleep either or he was bored, or that he knew Rachel was here. Though she couldn't imagine that he was here because he wanted to see or talk to her. She didn't think they had much in common. She knew that 

Theodore was intelligent and that he kept to himself quite a bit but the fact that he was in Slytherin didn't make her feel any better about being around him all the time.

From what she gathered Harry didn't like her being around Theodore either but he hadn't done anything to her. Hermione hadn't commented on it herself though, except when she first found out, though she wasn't sure if Hermione had a problem with Theodore. She knew there was a tension between her and Draco though. But she had learnt that Draco wasn't the nicest person in the world.

Theodore remained with her for at least a couple of hours before leaving. Rachel quickly wondered if he was returning to his own bed or if there was another place that he wanted or needed to be. Rachel sighed heavily and laid flat on her back. She looked up at the high ceiling. She still had things to talk to Remus about and it was the only thing she could think about right now.

The Easter holidays weren't too far away and she was looking forward to it. Her thoughts then went back to Snape. Today was Thursday and she would normally have had a lesson earlier. Maybe she would have to make up for it. She shrugged to herself and sighed again. She closed her eyes and after what felt like a long while, sleep finally took over her.

* * *

When the Easter holidays arrived, Rachel went back to Grimmauld Place. She thought about staying at Hogwarts but she wanted to talk to Remus and it had to be face to face. When they reached King's Cross Station she looked around but Remus wasn't there. She felt a little disappointed. She walked over to Hermione, Harry and the Weasleys. Arthur approached her after a moment. 'Hi Rachel, Remus said he wasn't feeling too well, so he asked me to take you to Grimmauld Place.'

Rachel looked at the ground quickly before looking at Arthur. 'Ok, thanks,' she said quickly. He smiled at her and went to talk to Bill for a few minutes before walking back to Rachel. 'Are you ready to go?'

Rachel just nodded. 'Good, let's go,' he said cheerfully.

She couldn't help but smile. She kind of liked Arthur, he was a kind and gentle man. She also noticed he loved anything to do with Muggles. She loved how curious he was and how he seemed to love most things. She had watched the Weasley before and she loved how close they seemed. She wondered if any of them ever felt left out or overshadowed by it, though she had nothing to compare it with. She only had Remus and Harry, although Remus isn't actually family.

She said a short good-bye to Hermione and Harry and followed Arthur to a Ministry car. Rachel wondered why Harry wasn't going to Grimmauld Place with her but she knew he might come there later. Maybe he was staying with the Weasleys this time around. She did think that Sirius would like to see him though.

They reached the car and drove straight to Grimmauld Place. Rachel thanked him quickly and took her stuff out of the boot. She waved at Arthur as he drove away and back to King's Cross. She turned to face the houses and waited patiently for them to part. She then walked up the stairs and entered the old house. She put her stuff in the hallway and walked into the living room. No-one was there. She then went into the kitchen and again there was no-one in there.

She frowned a little. The house was unusually quiet but she did figure that only Remus and Sirius would be here, unless another member wasn't working or something. She went back into the hallway and began walking up the stairs. She found Remus' room empty. She kept walking up the stairs to the top level and went to Sirius' room. At last, she found someone.

Sirius was lying on his bed, smoking a short pipe. He sat up quickly and grabbed his wand at the sudden noise. His face relaxed though when he saw Rachel. 'Oh, it's just you,' he said sighing. He placed his wand back onto the bed space beside him and he finished his pipe quickly.

'I didn't know you smoked,' Rachel said leaning against the door frame.

Sirius got up from the bed and walked to his bureau. He opened the bottom drawer and placed the pipe within it. 'Yeah, but not often. Sometimes the smell reminds me of Azkaban.' He closed the drawer and walked over to Rachel and smiled a little. 'Plus, Remus doesn't like the smell too much and since he lives here I try not to use it too much.'

'It's your house,' she reminded him.

'Yes, I know it is,' he said pushing her playfully.

Rachel smiled. She was surprised to hear him mention Azkaban at all but she didn't press it. 'So, where's Remus and everyone?' she asked.

'Remus is with the other werewolves. He should be back by tomorrow night,' Sirius added seeing the look on Rachel's face. 'Also, Harry's spending the first week of the holidays at the burrow and Hermione's spending a week with her parents and the other Order members are doing various things.'

'What's the burrow?' Rachel asked frowning. She tried to think if it had been mentioned before but she couldn't place it.

'It's the name of the Weasleys' home,' Sirius replied.

'I see. I thought Remus wasn't feeling well? That's what Mr. Weasley told me.'

Sirius shrugged. 'Well, you know Remus; he doesn't always like telling the truth about werewolf stuff.'

Rachel nodded her understanding. Sirius placed his arm around Rachel and they walked downstairs to the kitchen together. 'Come on, let's have dinner.'

'Dinner?' Rachel questioned.

'It's almost dinner time and I can cook,' Sirius informed her.

She smiled a little but didn't comment. She wanted to wait and see if he actually could cook. They entered the kitchen and Sirius sat Rachel at the table and she watched in amusement when Sirius tried to find his way around. A question came to Rachel.

'Does Remus eat raw meat?' she asked slowly.

Sirius stopped for a moment and looked at Rachel in surprise. He seemed to fumble. 'Um, yeah sometimes, though he usually eats it when no-one's around.'

'Why?'

Sirius continued his cooking and pan smashing. 'I don't know really. I think in a lot of ways he's ashamed of being a werewolf. He tries to hide it but you can tell he's tried to live among humans. It leaves its mark.'

'Really? How?' she asked still frowning.

Sirius just shrugged. 'I don't know. I'm not a werewolf. He looks normal to me. At school he was despondent sometimes, especially when it came to his condition. He hated talking about it.'

Rachel went quiet and watched Sirius some more. She leaned on her chair slightly and rested her head upon her arms. She didn't even know that about Remus. It was getting worse. 'Has Remus ever had someone special?'

There was a long pause while Sirius placed everything in a pot and placed it on the stove to cook. He joined her at the table. 'Well, I don't know really. He didn't like being close to people in that way. Most people don't like werewolves and there aren't many women who would want to be with one.'

'Is there anyone now?' she asked looking closely at Sirius.

Sirius' eyes narrowed slightly. He took in a sharp breath. 'No, not at the moment.'

'What does that mean?'

'It means that I'm not the one to be telling you any of this. It's between Remus and... Oh look, food's ready,' he said happily. Sirius jumped up from his seat and went over to the stove. He took out two bowls and scooped some food into them. He walked back to the table and place one bowl in front of Rachel. Sirius then sat down and summoned two spoons.

Rachel looked into her bowl. It looked like a stew of some sort. She picked up the spoon and gently mixed it around. She had thought it didn't cook long enough but then she looked at Sirius' wand, which now lay on the table. He must have sped it up a little. She took a small mouthful and her eyebrows went high. It actually tasted quite good, it surprised her.

Sirius noticed the look on her face. 'I told you I could cook.'

* * *

After dinner, Rachel sat in the living room with Sirius. No-one had come over yet, and nothing much else had happened. Rachel was sitting next to Sirius and he was telling her a story. She had never heard a wizarding story before but she was pretty sure she preferred the Muggle ones.

'By this time, the merman walked along the shore of the white sandy beach and...'

He was interrupted by Rachel's laughing. 'Merman don't walk,' she said holding her side. Sirius placed an arm around her and poked her gently. 'Just listen to the story, and no more interrupting.'

Rachel calmed down and she quietly apologised several times before relaxing in his arms and he turned the page of the small book and began to read again.

'The Merman wasn't sure which way to turn. He looked to the sea and wondered whether he should go in. He could have stayed here forever, but he knew he would lose his love. Things were becoming difficult. His legs were becoming tired, old and worn. He knew they would have to be replaced, but it wasn't going to be easy. He made it to the other side of the beach and he stopped. He stood still. He didn't even flinch when a rock flew past his face and missed his nose by centimetres.'

Sirius stopped again as Rachel laughed loudly once again. She couldn't help herself. This story was getting weirder and weirder. 'How big was his nose?' she asked before bursting into laughter once more.

Sirius mockingly sighed impatiently and he placed the book beside him. He took out his wand and pointed to Rachel's nose. She squealed and tried to move but Sirius grabbed the back of her neck and held her in place. 'I think it was something like this,' he said quickly.

He tapped his wand on her nose and it began to grow and Rachel squealed much louder. Sirius dropped his wand and held her mouth shut. 'If I stop, you have to stop laughing and interrupting.'

Rachel nodded her head the best she could and Sirius moved quickly. He grabbed his wand and waved it gently. Her nose stopped growing and it returned to normal. She sat back into Sirius' arms and he placed his arm around her again. Rachel still couldn't help but giggle and snort faintly. She couldn't remember the last time she laughed this hard or this much.

Sirius cleared his throat and opened the book at the page they were on and he continued reading. 'The Merman's eyes narrowed as he finally moved and turned his head to look at the human world on land. There were some things that were best left as they were. He had made a decision. He turned to face the ocean and he walked to it. He held his head high. He felt as though it were his destiny. It was going to be how it ought to have been. Once his legs touched the water he transformed back into his original form. Once completely submerged in water he looked at his tail. It glowed more brightly than it had before. Deep down, he was sure that he made the right decision. She would understand in time and she would learn to let go. The Merman turned his back on the surface and swam down into the ocean's depths.'

Sirius paused as he took a drink from his glass. Rachel watched him. She turned back when he began reading again. 'The Witch ran to the ocean's edge and she let a tear run down her cheek, staining it. She had watched her beloved go back into the water, which he belonged to. She knew it would end this way. She knew he wouldn't stay for her. She looked to the sand at her feet. She wondered whether she could change too. She turned to look at the land. Her family was all she had left but this Merman was her last chance at true love. She looked back at the water and took a deep breath. She held it as she ran and jumped into a deep part. Everything went black before her eyes and suddenly she felt them open of their own accord and she looked around her body. Her skin colour had turned snow-white her hands became webbed and her legs... she gasped and bubbles flowed from her mouth. She had a tail. It was blue, like the colour of the ocean and it sparkled. She smiled to herself and swan down into the depths to be with her love.'

Sirius stopped reading and he closed the book gently. Rachel wasn't sure what to think. 'So, um, what's the story about?'

'Well, it's simply about choices, I guess. The witch had to choose between her true love or her family and loved ones back in the human world.'

In a way, it made Rachel feel sad by the end of it. She thought the witch would cry and be sad for a little while and then move on with her life. She didn't expect her to jump into the water. 'But one shouldn't have to choose between the two,' Rachel told him firmly.

'Well, sometimes you do. What if you're family don't approve of who you fall in love with?'

'I think it'd be stupid if they did that.'

'Yeah, maybe, but not everyone is open minded and gives people a chance, I suppose.'

Rachel silently agreed with him and she laid her head on Sirius' chest. He absent-mindedly stroked her hair gently. Rachel closed her eyes. It felt nice. She wondered if she would ever have to make a choice like that. She knew it wouldn't be easy. She wondered if that would happen if a woman fell in love with Remus. What if her family didn't approve. Would she stay with Remus, even though it would make her an outcast too?

Rachel almost dozed off before Sirius nudged her and she gradually stood up. She said a quick good-night to Sirius and she went upstairs. She got changed and lay down in bed and stared at the ceiling. She realised how nice Sirius actually was, she didn't think they would ever get along that well. It did surprise her a little though.

* * *

The next morning when Rachel awoke she frowned as she looked around her room. Was that moaning she could hear? She got up from her bed and placed her robe around her quickly. She opened the bedroom door and looked both ways down the hallway. The sound was coming from Remus' bedroom. She walked to his door and listened for a moment but all she could hear was moaning.

She opened the door carefully and peered around it. Remus was lying on his back on the bed and his eyes were closed and his back was arched slightly. He seemed like he was a bit of pain. He wasn't the only other person in the room though; Sirius was there and also... Snape.

'Get her out of here, Black,' Snape said, not looking up.

Sirius gave Snape a dirty look and walked to Rachel. He placed his hands onto her arms and pushed her back out of the room. He took her downstairs into the kitchen and sat her at the table. Rachel was having trouble forming a consistent thought within her mind.

'Um, w-what was that? What's wrong with Remus?' she asked worriedly.

She watched as Sirius made some tea and joined her at the table. 'He'll be fine,' he said faintly.

'But what happened?' Rachel asked leaning forwards on the table towards Sirius.

'He had a disagreement with one of the werewolves and things got out of hand. He came back very early this morning and he collapsed. I got Snape here and... yeah, he'll be fine.'

Rachel suddenly felt like crying, but she knew it wouldn't do any good. She had a great night last night with Sirius and she now felt like all of that happiness had left her. Sirius moved off his seat quickly and sat beside her. He placed an arm around Rachel and rubbed her arm. 'He will be just fine,' Sirius said in a strong but calming voice.

She nodded her head slowly but his words didn't make her feel any better. All she wanted now was to be close to Remus and be by his side. She felt a tear slide down her cheek and she wiped it away immediately. She wasn't used to crying, it felt unnatural to her. It made her think about what would happen if Remus died or if something ever happened to him. What would happen to her then? What would she do?

After half-an-hour Snape came into the kitchen and looked between Rachel and Sirius. They both looked up and Sirius made some space between himself and Rachel quickly but Snape didn't miss it. His lip curled slightly and he approached them. 'Lupin will be fine. The pain has ceased and he is resting comfortably. And, Miss Potter, I suggest you get ready for your next lesson with me, which shall be on Friday.'

Rachel nodded at him once and Snape then left the kitchen, his long black cloak billowing behind him. Rachel didn't move her eyes until the kitchen door had swung closed. Rachel wondered why he was leaving the lesson so late. Was it because of Remus?

She moved out of her seat and went straight up to Remus' room and Sirius followed her quickly. She went into the room and Remus looked over at her and smiled faintly. She walked over to the bed and hugged Remus. He groaned slightly and Rachel moved back quickly. 'Sorry,' she said hastily.

'It's Ok,' he said smiling.

Sirius entered the room and closed the door behind him. 'Couldn't keep her out, sorry.'

Remus just smiled more. Sirius lifted his wand and conjured a chair for Rachel to sit on. She sat down and took Remus' hand. 'What happened?' she asked quietly.

'It was nothing,' Remus said, trying to dismiss it.

'No, Remus, I want to know,' she said firmly.

'It was just was small disagreement with Greyback. He's not one to argue with. I tried to calm him down but nothing I said worked. If anything, it made him angrier. He attacked and it ended quickly.'

'Wasn't it Greyback that made you a werewolf?' Rachel asked.

Remus looked at her wide-eyed. 'How did you know that?'

'Hermione told me,' she answered quietly.

Sirius shifted where he was standing but he said nothing. Remus' body relaxed and he sighed. 'Yeah, it was Greyback who bit me and yes, he did recognise me,' Remus said looking at Sirius.

Rachel looked between them but neither of them explained it. 'What does that mean?' Rachel asked still looking between them.

'Nothing,' Remus said.

'Remus,' Rachel said warningly.

'It means that Greyback can recognise werewolves that he has bitten himself and he doesn't like werewolves who live around or with humans,' Sirius said. Rachel nodded. That cleared up a few things, well, in her mind anyway.

'Sirius,' Remus said quickly. 'She doesn't need to know any of this.'

'But from what I've heard Rachel doesn't really know anything about you or your life when it doesn't concern her. She wants to know but you're shutting her out and keeping things from her. She's not a child anymore Remus,' Sirius said almost angrily. He kept his eyes on Remus but he had nothing to say to that. Sirius sighed in anger and left the room.

Rachel hadn't expected Sirius to suddenly fire up about something so small. It was a big deal to her but it didn't really affect anyone else. She wondered if it was because Sirius was best friends with her father. Maybe he didn't agree with how Remus had raised her or how he was treating her now. It made her feel special in a way but she wished Remus could see her like Sirius did.

'What's he talking about?' Remus asked looking at Rachel.

She shrugged lightly. 'Nothing much. But, I have found out some things recently, about you, Hogwarts, mum and dad and it makes me feel like I don't really know you at all. I mean, l love you but there's so much I feel like I need to know and I don't, well, things I would like to know anyway.'

'I'm sorry,' Remus whispered.

'Can we talk about things later, when you're feeling better?'

Remus nodded but remained quiet. Rachel thought he looked a little nervous or sick, or something similar. She was sure that he didn't want to have this conversation. After a little while longer Rachel decided to let Remus rest and she walked downstairs and she sat in the living room. Rachel suddenly felt alone. She did wish that Hermione or Harry were here. She wanted to talk to someone her own age.

She frowned slightly when she remember about her next lesson with Snape. It was on Friday, she couldn't figure out why though. She usually had lessons on Tuesday and Thursday but she knew he could just have something planned or he was probably busy. Or maybe it was to do with Remus, like she had originally thought. Or maybe he was giving her some time out, but she couldn't imagine why he'd do that either.

She eventually lay down on the couch and closed her eyes. A part of her wondered if she went to sleep and woke up if everything would be different. She dozed off after a few minutes of silence.

Rachel groaned slightly as she felt someone gently pushing her and saying her name. She opened her eyes and she was met with Remus' blue ones. She smiled a little. She was happy to see him up and about. She sat up on the couch and Remus straightened. 'How long was I asleep?' she asked rubbing her eyes gently.

'Not long, a few hours I think. Sirius kept an eye on you,' Remus said smiling faintly.

'Are you healed already?'

'Yes,' he said nodding. 'Severus has got some strong potions, he's good at it. I'll give him that.'

Rachel smiled and quickly moved forwards to hug Remus. He hugged her back enthusiastically.

'Now, I think we have some things that you want to discuss.'


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

Rachel nodded. 'Ok, maybe it's time I told you some things, then.'

Both Rachel and Remus walked into the kitchen and sat at the table. Remus got a pot of tea and Rachel couldn't help but smile as she watched. She knew Remus loved his tea. It was his answer to a lot of things. He sat opposite Rachel and he waited for her questions.

Rachel took a deep breath. She couldn't believe it was now. She now had the chance to ask anything she wanted and she wasn't sure where to start. She looked across the table at Remus. He wanted patiently for her questions, though he still looked a little nervous. 'I don't know where to start,' she said slowly. 'Um, tell about when you were at school.'

Remus shifted in his chair a little and kept his eyes on Rachel. He took a deep breath. 'Well, I got my letter when I was ten and I thought I wouldn't be allowed to go but Dumbledore and I met, along with my parents and he discussed the possibility of me going to school. They planted the Whomping Willow and built the shack in Hogsmeade. It was very kind of Dumbledore to do such a thing for one person. I was very grateful.'

'I met James and Sirius on the train on the way to school. I had trouble finding somewhere to sit and they saw me walk past their compartment. They offered me a seat and I thought they looked alright. They introduced themselves and once we all found out we were in the same house we all became friends. We met Peter a few days later. He was being picked on by a couple of Slytherin students and James and Sirius walked over to them and told them to back off. I think mainly because Peter was a fellow Gryffindor.'

At that moment the kitchen door opened and Sirius walked in. He sat down at the other end of the table and watched them. 'Do you mind Sirius being here?' Remus asked.

Rachel shook her head. 'No, it's Ok, he'll probably know if you're telling me the truth.'

She noticed the look on Remus' face. 'Don't worry, I know you won't lie to me,' she said quickly.

Remus nodded and continued. 'Anyway, Peter joined our group not long after that incident. He was surprised to be friends with people like James and Sirius and so was I. They both told me that they knew I was a werewolf just before the end of our first year. They found out before that but they weren't sure how to tell me that they knew. I always had an excuse about why I wasn't around, and most of the time it worked. When they told me that they knew I was expecting the worst. They quickly reassured me that they didn't care and that they wanted to help but I still had trouble believing that.'

Rachel interrupted quickly. 'What are your parents' names?' she asked.

'John and Melinda,' he said quietly. 'Are they alive?' Rachel asked gently.

Remus shook his head. 'No, my father died just before I went to school and my mother died when I was sixteen.'

'How did you support yourself? Rachel asked.

'Well, your father and his family helped me out a lot. Your grandparents died not long after James finished school. He continued to help me out money wise and a little bit more after I took care of you. I'll never forget it.'

'How do you support yourself now?' Rachel asked leaning on the table.

'Sirius does now, sometimes.'

Rachel nodded. That made sense to her. She knew it wasn't easy for Remus to work because he was a werewolf. Thinking of it made her think of another questions.

'What happened when Greyback bit you?' she asked softly.

'I don't think you need to hear that.'

Rachel gave him a stern look and Sirius cleared his throat. 'You told the story to me and James.'

'Yes, but you asked and I didn't feel right not telling you.'

'Then tell her, now she's asking,' Sirius said indicating to Rachel. 'She's important to you too Remus.'

'Fine. I do remember it. I was five years old and I was in the kitchen with my mother. We both heard my father arguing with someone, though I didn't know who he was at first. I heard the other man say that I father would regret the day his son was born. I've never forgotten it. A week and a half later it was a full moon and I was outside waiting for my father to come home from work. Mother was in the kitchen making dinner and before I knew what had happened I was knocked over by someone and all I felt was several sharp pains around my body. The figure on top of me was biting and scratching at me. I was scared. I screamed and my mother came outside but she was a Muggle, she didn't know what to do. I was lucky that father came home within a few more minutes and scared the thing away. I was taken to hospital and my parents informed me that it was a werewolf that attacked and bit me. And they said that I was now one too.'

'How did they take it?' Rachel asked quietly.

'Not well. My mother cried a lot after it happened. She felt like my future was now gone, that it was ruined and my father took it badly. He blamed himself for offending Greyback. He kept telling my mother that if he hadn't said anything to Greyback or if he had just pretended to go along with him then none of it would have happened. It tore my parents apart eventually. They stopped sleeping in the same room when I was nine. I thought it was because of me but my mother kept telling me it wasn't.'

'Did you blame your father at all?'

Remus shrugged. 'Not at first, but when I was older I realised what had actually happen. But then I also learnt that if father didn't come home when he did then I probably wouldn't be here now. Greyback would surely have killed me.'

'Why didn't they have another child?' Rachel asked slowly.

'I don't know. Maybe they were worried that the same thing would happen and like I said it tore them apart too. They weren't the same after the incident and neither was I.'

Rachel nodded and decided it was time to move onto another subject. She didn't want to upset Remus with too many questions about his parents and the way he became a werewolf. She thought it was a good time to ask about another personal thing, since Sirius wouldn't give her a proper answer.

'What about your personal life? Is there a special woman?' she asked smiling a little.

Remus' eyes narrowed in Sirius' direction briefly before turning back to Rachel. 'No, there is no-one,' he said lightly.

Rachel smiled a little more. 'That's not the impression that I got from Sirius last night,' she said slyly.

Remus' head turned sharply as he looked at Sirius. He frowned but Sirius just smiled. 'Fine, but keep it to yourself. I've got enough people harassing me about this, especially Molly.'

Rachel nodded. 'I promise, it stays with me.'

'Fine, it's Nymphadora,' he told her quietly.

'Tonks!' she exclaimed brightly.

'Yes,' Remus said calmly. 'And no, nothing is happening and nor will it happen.'

'But why?'

'You already know why,' Remus said looking at Rachel.

She looked back at him. She thought he looked a little sad. He didn't like that he was, maybe, throwing something away that could be good for him. She hadn't noticed anything between Remus and Tonks though. She couldn't picture them together. The more she thought about it though, the better it sounded. They wouldn't look too bad together.

Rachel took a slow breath and picked up her tea cup and took a long sip. She felt she had just learnt a lot with those few questions.

'There's another thing which has been bothering me. When I was in Beauxbatons why couldn't Harry and I have any contact at all? Why keep us completely split up? Why didn't he learn about me before I got here? Why couldn't we at least write to each other?'

When she stopped speaking she took a moment to steady herself. The words just tumbled from her mouth. She was starting to understand why Harry had a big problem with her coming back. They were strangers to each other and both Remus and Dumbledore had kept them apart. For a split second it made Rachel angry with Remus.

She looked at Remus who seemed unable to think or form a proper sentence. He opened his mouth a couple of times but closed them quickly. He didn't seem to know what to say.

'Rachel, you have to understand that we wanted to protect both you and Harry.'

'And it protected us to not know each other. It was hard for me to know about Harry all these years and not being able to write to him and not talk about him like I knew him personally. You don't understand Remus, I wanted to be here, I wanted to know Harry and I wanted you to be around also.'

The words left her mouth angrily. Remus just stared at her as she vented. 'I now understand Remus why Harry was upset about me being here and about us not knowing each other.'

She stopped talking as Remus took a loud breath. 'Rachel,' he started slowly. 'Harry has a mind connection with Voldemort and if Harry knew about you then Voldemort would have known about you too and could have gone after you. It was better to hide you for a while and it meant that Harry, at least, couldn't know about you.'

'Don't you think he'll see it as a betrayal, from you and Dumbledore? He trusts both of you and now you've hidden me and all of a sudden I come into his life, and there isn't much of an explanation. We're not children,' Rachel stated.

'I know,' Remus said quietly. 'We did what we thought was right at the time and it may have backfired a little. Maybe we should have brought you back sooner.'

'Or never sent me away at all,' Rachel said darkly.

For the first time, Remus gave Rachel a curious look. She had never spoken to him like that before. 'Is that the only reason we were separated?'

Remus nodded. 'Yes,' he said quietly.

'I don't believe it,' Rachel said calmly.

She got up from her seat and walked away from the table and Remus. She didn't really want to be around him at the moment. She had always loved Remus and she always thought he was looking after her but what if there was something more to it?

'Why?' Remus asked not moving from his own seat.

'Because me not being here doesn't guarantee that I would be safe. I think I would have been safer here with you, Harry and the Order. Did you worry about the bond I might have had with Harry? Did you think it would take something away from you and me?'

She stood in the kitchen still and leaned against the cupboards, with her arms by her sides. She looked over at Remus who took a sip of his tea. He said nothing. He was looking at the table.

'Do you think it's what mum and dad would have wanted, their two children being split up and not being able to contact each other? Would they still have trusted you, if they knew that it was your plan?'

'It wasn't just my plan. Dumbledore was the one that suggested it.'

'And that makes it better?' Rachel yelled.

Remus shot out of his chair and stood before Rachel. She almost jumped, he came at her fast. It scared her a little. 'Look, I'm not happy with what happened. I wasn't sure about you being away from here, but like I said we did what we thought was right at the time. I'm sorry if you or Harry feel betrayed but maybe when you have children you'll understand,' Remus spat heatedly.

'I'm not your child,' Rachel said bitterly.

'Maybe that's a good thing then,' Remus said back.

The room went deathly silent and Remus went to touch Rachel. She moved away from him and out of his reach and she left the kitchen in a hurry and slammed the door behind her. Remus hung his head and looked at the floor. He had said the wrong thing.

'I thought you loved her,' Sirius said softly.

'I do,' Remus replied, not moving from where he was standing.

Rachel reached her bedroom in record time and she slammed that door behind her too. She laid on the bed and felt the tears sting the back of her eyes before they flowed down her cheeks.

* * *

A few hours later, Rachel left her bedroom and went back down into the kitchen, it was empty. Remus must have gone to bed. Maybe he wanted to give both of them time to think things through. She sighed heavily and went back upstairs. She went another floor up and wanted to know if Sirius was still awake. She knocked on the door gently and opened it slowly.

The door creaked a little and she poked her head into the room. Sirius was awake. He was lying on his back and pointing his wand towards the ceiling. He looked up as her head came through the door. 'I'm awake. You can come in,' he said clearly.

Rachel smiled to herself and walked over to his bed. Sirius was only wearing a pair of long, black pants. She was surprised that he was shirtless. She couldn't help but look. He was pale, thin and hairless, and there were a few inky black tattoos at the top of his chest. She looked away quickly and looked down at his face. Sirius took his eyes off his wand and looked to her. He patted the bed space beside him.

She smiled faintly and laid on the bed next to Sirius. He shifted over to her swiftly and placed an arm around her. She held her breath for a moment as she brought her into his arms but then relaxed. She had been there before, even though last time he was wearing a shirt. Sirius stroked her hair gently.

'You know Remus loves you,' he said quietly. 'He sees you as his daughter. I think things got a little too heated.'

'Yeah, maybe.' Rachel didn't think she could say anymore. It made her feel like crying again. Her breathing went back to normal and she instinctively placed a hand on Sirius' chest. 'Why are you still awake?' she asked.

'I sometimes have trouble sleeping. Azkaban takes away many things. I can't sleep like I used to and once I wake up I don't usually go back. I just stay awake and find something else to do.'

'Don't you feel tired though?' she asked frowning a little.

She felt Sirius shrugged. 'Sometimes. You get used to it.' Sirius paused. 'You know Remus does love you? He was doing what he thought best.'

'Then why does he still treat me like I'm a five year old?'

'Maybe he still wishes you were. He found it hard with you not being around and in another country. He thought about bringing you back earlier many times but Dumbledore wouldn't hear of it. I've known Remus for many years and I know he wouldn't intentionally hurt you or Harry.'

Silently, Rachel sort of agreed with Sirius. She doesn't know Remus like he does. 'What do you think mum and dad would've thought?'

Again, she felt Sirius shrug. 'I don't know. Only they could answer that properly. But I'd like to think they'd be happy with the way Remus took care of you. I don't think they wanted you and Harry separated but they would've forgiven Remus, maybe that's what you should do.'

'What was Azkaban like?' Rachel asked changing the subject.

For some reason, Sirius chuckled loudly. 'It wasn't very nice. Gives a person nightmares and if you survive long enough to get out then you'll find you won't look the same again.' Sirius stopped talking abruptly and continued to stroke Rachel's hair.

She suddenly felt bad at asking something that was none of her business. She closed her eyes slowly. She liked the feeling of something stroking her hair. It was relaxing. 'Have you ever had someone special Sirius?' she asked

'No, I can't say I have. Well, I've had many special people. Was a long time ago though,' he said quietly.

'Bit of a player?' she asked smiling.

'Don't be cheeky,' he said playfully. 'So, I've heard rumours about you getting friendly with a Slytherin boy at school,' Sirius informed her.

At hearing that Rachel opened her eyes. The room was completely dark now. She looked up and she could see Sirius' eyes looking into hers. 'Where did the light go?' she asked quickly.

'It was coming from my wand,' he informed her. 'Now, don't change the subject.'

'There isn't anything going on with Theodore. We've talked a few times but that's it. I wouldn't even consider us friends,' she said laying her head on Sirius' chest again.

'What's his surname?' Sirius asked slowly.

'Nott, why?

'His father's a Death Eater, he was captured last year,' Sirius enlightened her.

'Really? No-one said anything to me.' It took Rachel by surprise. She didn't know Theodore's father was a Death Eater. She knew it didn't really change anything though, but now she knew to be careful about what she said around him.

'Just don't get too comfortable with him,' Sirius said softly.

Rachel nodded and her eyes gradually closed. She didn't even remember falling asleep.

* * *

In the morning the door to Sirius' bedroom opened. 'Sirius have you seen Rachel around I can't fi-.' Remus didn't finish the sentence as he entered Sirius' room without knocking. Remus' face quickly turned to anger.

'Sirius!' he yelled. 'What the hell are you doing?'

Rachel stirred and opened her eyes. She could see Remus standing in the room, though he was blurry. She sat up in alarm and Remus was still there, waiting for an answer. Remus turned on his heel and left the room, slamming the door behind him. He was angry.

Sirius moved his arm from around Rachel and he got off the bed causally. Rachel started to move. She wanted to talk to Remus. It's not what he thinks. Sirius casually placed a black shirt on but he didn't do it up. He looked to Rachel, 'Let me talk to Remus.'

He left the room and Rachel quickly made her way back to her own room. She sat on the bed and looked at the door. Her heart was beating rapidly and she had trouble slowly down her breathing. Why did she feel guilty? She hadn't done anything wrong.

She got dressed quickly and went downstairs; she could hear Remus yelling already. Rachel stayed in the living-room. She could already hear them clearly enough. 'Sirius, what the hell was that,' he yelled.

'Remus, would you just calm down, I didn't touch Rachel.'

'Then why the hell is she in your bed?' he asked loudly.

'She was still upset last night. You had gone to bed and she came to talk to me, I was awake. I let her lay down next to me and she fell asleep.'

'Did you touch her at all?' Remus asked.

'Don't you dare Remus, how could you think that I would touch James' only daughter like that. I would never stoop that low.

'But then why was she in your arms, and why did you have your arm around her and why weren't you wearing a shirt?' he asked slowly.

Rachel walked closer and opened the kitchen door. She walked in but neither of them seemed to notice. She saw Sirius shrug. 'I don't know. I was just comforting her and I never wear a shirt to bed. Remus, you have to open your eyes, she's not a child. What are you going to do when she starts dating? You can't lock her up,' Sirius said firmly.

'I know,' Remus said exhaling sharply. He noticed Rachel in the room and he looked at her. 'I don't know. I just feel like she's growing up too fast.'

Rachel still wanted to be angry at Remus but she was finding it harder. She couldn't be angry with him for long. She did think about it. She was a baby when he took her from her parents. He raised her, he loved her, he took care of her, he did do what he thought was right. She couldn't say she would have done any differently in the same circumstances, no-one could say that.

She stiffened a little though as Remus approached her. 'I'm sorry for what I said to you last night; I didn't mean any of it. I was just angry that you didn't believe me. I didn't lie to you. I did what I thought best at the time. I now know that splitting you and Harry up wasn't the best idea. I'm sorry,' he said quietly.

Rachel smiled broadly and she fell into Remus' open arms and she hugged him tightly. He hugged her back the same way and she couldn't wipe the small smile off her face. She wanted to cry but nothing happened. She wondered if it was possible to cry so much that you never cry again.

Not long after the kitchen door opened again and all the Weasleys, minus Percy, Hermione, Harry and some Order members came into the room. They looked around, some of them looked alarmed. 'What was the noise in here before?' Kingsley asked looking at Rachel, Remus and Sirius.

'It was nothing,' Sirius said dismissing it. 'Just a misunderstanding.'

Rachel looked them over and her heart skipped a beat as her eyes found Charlie amongst them. She smiled a little and was happy as he looked at her and smiled too. When everyone in the kitchen found something else to do Charlie approached Rachel. 'Can we talk?' he asked quietly.

Rachel nodded and she followed him through the kitchen and into the small backyard. Remus' eyes followed them. He let her pass first and Charlie then closed the back door gently. As they walked down near the end together nothing was said. When they stopped Rachel watched Charlie. Was he going to tell her that he wasn't interested? That she was making a fool of herself?'

'How've you been?' he asked now looking at her.

'Fine, had a few ups and downs but nothing major, how about you?'

He smiled a little. 'Yeah, same. Been working a lot.'

Rachel nodded and looked around quickly. 'Well,' Charlie said clearing his throat. 'I've been thinking about how to ask you for a while, um, would you be interested in maybe... you know, going on a date?' he asked hesitantly.

Rachel couldn't help but grin. 'Yeah, I would love to. I thought you weren't interested, I didn't hear back from you.'

Charlie ran and hand through his red hair, making it messier. 'Yeah, sorry about that, we got two baby dragons recently and they're quite a handful.'

'You'll have to show me them one time,' she said still smiling.

'Yeah, of course, that'd be good.'

'Cool. So, how about Saturday night, for the date?' Charlie asked.

'Yeah, that sounds good.'

The back door opened and a few heads poked out from the door. Charlie sighed, and then chuckled. Some of his siblings were spying through the door, though they weren't doing a very good job at hiding it. 'I think they're on to us,' Charlie said happily.

'Looks like it,' Rachel said back.

Together they walked back to the house and went into the kitchen. They heard many thundering footsteps trying to get away from the door. Remus, Sirius, and other Order members were still in the kitchen. Remus was looking at her. She decided not to tell him about the date yet. It wasn't until Saturday; there was time to talk about it later.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

Once again Rachel was sitting in the kitchen at the table opposite Remus. He kept asking about what happened with Charlie. It was Friday afternoon and Rachel was waiting for Snape to arrive for another lesson. It's been a while since she had one. The last time something strange had happened, she didn't think much of it, but she couldn't help but wonder if something bad happened that day. Had he said something to her? Shown her something? She didn't think he had touched her. He was a teacher, surely he knew his boundaries.

'I already told you Remus, Charlie asked me out the other night and I said yes. It's for tomorrow night.'

'I'm not happy about this?' Remus said looking at her.

'Why?' she asked sighing.

'Because Charlie is... a little older than you and...'

Rachel cut him off. 'He will also not let anything bad happen, Charlie's a wizard and I'm sure he knows how to take care of himself and me while I'm with him.'

'I'm not saying he won't look after you but Rachel, he is a bit older than you.'

'I know he is,' Rachel said clearly. 'And you can worry about it more tomorrow night, Ok? But first I have to survive another lesson with Snape.'

As she stood up she heard the front door open. She went into the living-room and came face to face with Snape. He was wearing his usual attire. 'Upstairs again?' she asked looking at the stairs once.

Snape nodded once and she led the way to Regulus' bedroom. She walked inside and turned to face Snape. He entered the room and closed the door gently. He waved his wand at the door and Rachel frowned a little. 'What are you doing?'

'Locking the door,' he informed her.

'Yeah, but why?'

Snape didn't answer her. She felt like he was getting stranger and stranger. His behaviour towards her seemed to change. He took a few of his own memories out of his head and placed them in an empty vial. He placed them in his pocket and Rachel continued to watch. She kept looking at the pocket which he had placed his memories into. It was tempting. She wanted to know what he was hiding from her. She took another step back from him and took out her own wand.

'No more questions. Let us begin. Prepare yourself.'

Rachel did just that. Even though many things happened a few days ago, she felt amazingly relaxed and free of her emotions. She felt ready for this. 'Legilimens,' Snape shouted.

Rachel waited for something to happen but nothing did. She felt a pressure within her head but nothing beyond that. She felt like she was blind, there was nothing to see. Her eyes were open but 

nothing was getting in. She felt her arm lifted and she could form a single word within her mind. 'Expelliarmus,' she said weakly.

Within seconds the pressure lifted and Snape was watching her intriguingly. 'You tried to disarm me,' he stated.

Rachel shrugged. She must have. 'I couldn't see you but it was like I could feel where you were in the room. I could feel the pressure in my head but it's hard to think with that there.'

'You did well to get a spell out at all. I am surprised, however, that you were able to do it, considering your last lesson, you weren't able to do much at all,' Snape said slowly.

'Yeah, I know,' she said quietly. Rachel hated thinking about her last lesson. It was still strange to her. She looked Snape up and down quickly. 'What happened in the last lesson?' she asked slowly, not taking her eyes off Snape.

He frowned very faintly at her. 'What do you mean?'

'I don't know... I don't remember much but you only tried it once and it failed but something happened before that and I can't remember. Also, at one point you were standing abnormally close to me. I thought it was strange,' she said unsurely.

'I can assure you that nothing inappropriate happened, I know well enough not to touch a student,' Snape said firmly.

'Would you ever touch me though? Have you thought about it?' Rachel asked quickly.

Her eyes widened. She hadn't expected to say that. She felt like cursing herself. 'Miss Potter, that is extremely inappropriate. I suggest you keep your thoughts on something else,' he said in a low voice.

'I'm sorry, sir,' Rachel said quickly, almost fumbling on her words. She could feel her face turning red. Why did she care if he would touch her or not? She didn't really like the idea of being that close to Snape. She shook her head and was quickly brought back to the room.

'Legilimens,' Snape shouted at her swiftly.

No memories flooded before her mind but she felt unable to move. She wasn't ready for that. When the pressure lifted Snape paused and stared at her again. 'Well done, Miss Potter.'

'I... don't understand,' she said slowly.

'You were very unprepared for that attack and you still blocked me out. It seems you are able to do this without much trouble, too bad the same can't be said for your brother.'

Rachel took a deep breath. He never missed an opportunity to take a shot at her brother. She knew it was better to say nothing. 'I think you should now be concentrating on breaking free of the person breaking into your mind.'

'How?' Rachel asked frowning.

'You need to use your wand. Any spell will have an effect but depending on the strength of it will depend on how well it will work,' Snape explained. 'Disarming them may not work at all, since they are in control of what they're are doing. A shield charm may be very useful; as will many other smaller spells.'

'Like a skin burning one?' she asked.

'Yes, if you're able to do one, it would be a great distraction,' he replied.

Rachel nodded. She readied herself for the new attack. She focused on attempting a shield charm. It seemed like the most logical one to use. 'Legilimens,' Snape shouted again.

Once again, no memories went through her mind but she tried to come up with the spell. She felt herself on the edge of doing it but it melted away quickly as Snape pulled out from the surface of her mind.

'You were close. Try harder,' he instructed.

Rachel wondered who taught Snape this subject and if this was how it was done. She liked being able to do it but since her talk with Harry about it, she was beginning to wonder if she would actually need it. They tried again. 'Legilimens.'

Rachel felt the pressure on her mind once more but this time she was more ready for it. She lifted her arm, though it felt like lead and she focused on the shield charm. 'Protego,' she said clearly.

All she saw was a flash of white before seeing a flood of memories. For a moment she thought she had failed and had let go of her own control but then she realised... these memories were not hers. She felt like she took a step back as the memories slowed down and almost came to a stop and started to play, as though it were really happening now.

She watched as a man, who looked a lot like Snape, yelled at a woman who cowered on the floor. The man seemed to lose his patience quickly and he grabbed the pale woman by her black hair and he dragged her up the stairs. The woman screamed and cried and Rachel suddenly heard a small whimper. As first she thought it was an animal but she looked to the corner and saw a young boy was standing there in the darkness, with tears running down his face.

Rachel yelped as she felt herself brought back to Regulus' bedroom. She was sitting on the floor. She looked up at Snape who had turned white. She slowly got up and kept her eyes on the man in front of her. 'What did I just see?'

'Nothing that you should concern yourself with or repeat to anyone else,' Snape said seriously.

Rachel nodded her head rapidly. She didn't think she wanted to tell anyone else what she saw. She could only imagine how private a thing like that would be. Why didn't he remove it? Maybe he thought she wouldn't see that particular one. If that one was bad and extremely private, then it made her wonder about the memories that he keeps taking out before their lessons.

After a few more tries Snape was the one who seemed unable to concentrate. He ended the lesson earlier than planned and told Rachel he would see her on Tuesday. She just nodded and said a quick good-bye to him. She watched as he left the room quickly and she wondered if it was really that bad.

She had figured that the people in the memory were his parents and him when he was little. He looked to only be about six. She wondered if his father was always like that, or if it happened just that once. She didn't hear any words being said but she could see the look on the man's face and he appeared extremely angry. The woman though seemed scared but Rachel noticed she kept looking towards the little boy, which she guessed was Snape. Maybe his mother cared more about his safety than her own, but Rachel knew it wouldn't have helped him mentally or emotionally.

She placed her pocket inside her wand and she went downstairs. When she reached the living-room she suddenly felt strange. Remus was sitting on the lounge reading and he looked up at her. 'Everything alright, Rachel?' he asked.

'Yeah, I think so,' she said slowly. 'Actually, no. How come I can do magic here and not get into trouble. I'm not supposed to do magic outside of school.'

'It happened last time and you didn't question it,' Remus told her.

'Yeah, I know, but I didn't think of it then. So, why can I do magic here now?'

'It's only for your lessons with Snape, beside it's not like you're using much anyway. Dumbledore cleared it, it's Ok. You have a good reason.'

'But why do I need to learn this subject? Why not keep trying to teach it to Harry?' she asked slowly.

She walked over to Remus and sat beside him. He put his book aside and he sighed. 'Well, Dumbledore thought it would be a good idea. Sirius and a few others thought it stupid for you to learn it. Maybe he thinks you might be kidnapped or something.'

'But what if that happens?'

'What are the chances of that?' Remus asked back.

Rachel just shrugged and leaned against the sofa. She suddenly felt tired. But then she remembered about her date with Charlie tomorrow night. Thinking about it again, made her feel excited all over again. She was greatly looking forward to tomorrow night.

As though reading her mind Remus sighed loudly. 'Are you still intent on going tomorrow night?'

'Yes, Remus. I'm not changing my mind. I thought you liked Charlie?' Rachel asked.

'I do, but like I told you before, he's older than you. I just want you to be sure and I don't want you rushing into anything.'

'I'm not rushing into anything. I like Charlie. I want to get to know him. I hope you'll support me,' she said softly.

'Of course I will, but like I said, don't rush anything.'

'Relax Remus,' Rachel said moving closer to Remus. She gave him a quick hug and then she stood up. 'I promise I'm not rushing anything. Now, I have to choose my outfit for tomorrow,' she said happily before heading upstairs to her room. Remus watched her leave the room. He sighed and went back to reading his book.

* * *

When Saturday night came Rachel was feeling nervous. She laid out her outfit but now she wasn't sure about it. There came a small knock at the door and Rachel looked over and saw Hermione poke her head through. 'Can I come in?' she asked smiling.

'Yeah, of course, come in.'

'I heard you have a date with Charlie,' Hermione said excitedly.

'Yes, I do, but I'm nervous. What if we have nothing to talk about?'

'I'm sure you'll find something. I wonder what he has planned. By the way, why didn't you tell me you were interested in Charlie?'

Rachel shrugged. She hadn't told anyone that she was interested in Charlie. At first she thought it was stupid because Charlie was older, he lived in another country and he was already settled in his life. 'I don't know, I didn't really tell anyone. I'm sorry,' she said.

Hermione chuckled. 'Don't worry about it. I think things with you and Ginny might get worse. You should have seen her face when she found out.'

Rachel wasn't sure how to feel about it. She knew Ginny didn't like her; it was no secret to anyone. Now she had a problem with her going on a date with her brother. Rachel didn't like Harry dating her either but she kept it to herself. She didn't want to make things worse but they already seemed to be going that way.

Rachel straightened her top and looked at herself in the mirror again. She was wearing a black skirt which came just above her knees, with black stockings underneath and she decided to match it with a silver top. It was one of her favourites. She also decided to leave her hair out and she ran her hands through it for the hundredth time. She wasn't wearing too much make-up though. She wanted to keep it natural.

Hermione opened her closet and walked over to her carrying some black shoes. Rachel took them and smiled. She walked to the bed and placed them on her feet. They were the shoes Charlie had given her for Christmas. She hadn't had the chance to wear them yet.

She stood up once they were on and looked down at her feet. They fitted very well, and they were very comfortable. Hermione gasped audibly. Rachel looked at her, she looked excited for her. 'I'm sure you'll have fun,' Hermione squealed a little.

Rachel wondered if Hermione would rather go on the date instead of her. They both turned to the bedroom door as they heard Sirius' voice. 'Rachel, Charlie's here,' he yelled.

Rachel cringed a little and Hermione giggled. Did he have to yell it so everyone could hear? She left the room with Hermione and when they went into the living-room she saw Charlie in there, along with Remus and Sirius. She approached them slowly and looked as Hermione left the room smiling at her. She looked at Remus, he looked uncomfortable.

'Hi,' Rachel said to Charlie. She felt nervous herself.

'Hi,' he replied. He smiled at her slightly.

She looked him over. He looked quite nice. He was wearing black jeans matched with a light blue shirt. He was also holding his black jacket around one arm. She still thought he was handsome. His blue eyes sparkled and his red hair looked a little longer than it did last time.

'Are you ready to go?' he asked.

Rachel nodded and they walked to the door together. Remus followed them. They both turned to face him. Remus handed Rachel her black jacket. 'You might need it.'

Rachel nodded and thanked him as she took the jacket. Charlie then opened the front door quietly. 'Look after her,' Remus said quickly.

'I will,' said Charlie smiling. 'I'll have her home by midnight.'

Remus opened his mouth to say something else but it didn't come out. Sirius came into the room and beat him too it. 'You two have a great time. Come on Remus; let's have a cup of tea...'

Both Rachel and Charlie chuckled and they left the house together. They walked up the street together and Rachel couldn't help but feel a little strange. She was feeling nervous and they hadn't spoken yet. She looked at him and he looked back. They smiled at each other.

'So, can I ask what you have planned?' Rachel asked nervously.

'Well, I'm sure you can. I have made a reservation at a small Muggle restaurant in London, and then I thought we could go see a movie,' he replied.

'Sounds like a very Muggle date,' Rachel commented.

Charlie looked to her quickly. 'Is that a bad thing?'

Rachel shook her head. 'No, not at all, I was just saying. I don't mind what we do.'

'Cool,' he said smiling more. 'Nice boots by the way.'

Rachel smiled broadly but said nothing.

They reached the end of the street and they stopped. Charlie faced Rachel and he took out his wand. He looked around quickly and looked back at Rachel. 'I think you should take my arm,' he said.

'Are we apparating?' she asked slowly.

'Yeah, I thought it would be the quickest way.'

'Ok,' she said nervously. She wrapped her arm around him and she held onto him tightly. She felt a tight feeling in her chest as they spun on the spot and everything went dark quickly. When they landed somewhere else she looked around quickly. She felt like she couldn't breathe when they arrived.

'Are we in London?' she asked.

'Yep, the restaurant is just around the corner,' he told her.

She felt surprised as he took her hand and took off towards their destination. 'Do you know how to use Muggle money?' she asked smiling.

'Yeah, well, I'm not brilliant at it, but we have some Muggle places in Romania that we go to.'

'What types of places?'

'Pubs, bars and clubs mostly,' he said coyly.

'Yeah, I thought so,' she said giggling a little. She smiled broadly as they made their way to the restaurant. She loved the feeling of this happiness. It spread throughout her body like warmth, it made her feel nice.

They reached the restaurant quickly and were seated almost instantly. She looked up at the name of the place, _The Quiet Place. _Her eyebrows rose a little. She wasn't sure how popular this place was. There were other people here, a few other couples and a group of teenagers, who were all sitting at the bar, laughing and drinking.

They were given menus and they both looked them over silently. 'See anything that makes your tummy jump?' he asked.

'Sort of, the chicken looks nice,' she commented.

'I like the look the steak,' he said back.

Charlie called the waiter over when they had decided and he ordered the chicken for Rachel and the steak for himself. He also ordered some drinks, a diet coke for Rachel and a beer for him. For a moment, it made Rachel feel like a stupid kid. She couldn't drink yet. She looked around at the table.

'Something wrong?' Charlie asked.

She shrugged. 'Nothing, really. I just feel kind of silly.'

'Why?' he asked frowning.

'Well, you can drink and everything. I'm not even old enough to and...'

'Don't worry about it,' Charlie said interrupting. 'You're not a child and you're not too young for me. If you were I'd tell you.'

She nodded slowly. She still wasn't sure. She couldn't help but think he would rather date someone of age. Someone who could go out and do anything, someone that could drink and all that other stuff. She tried to believe that it didn't matter, but not matter what she told herself, she couldn't believe it.

Rachel decided they should talk while waiting for their food. 'So, um, how is work going?' she asked. She kicked herself mentally. How is work going? There must be better things she could ask.

Charlie cleared his throat. 'It's going alright. Like I told you before we got two babies recently and they're quite a handful.'

'How many species do you have there?' she asked.

'Well, there are ten species and we do have all of them, but we have more of some, of course.'

Rachel nodded. She didn't mind talking about this. Maybe it wasn't such a stupid question after all. 'And what species gave birth?'

'Are you sure you want to hear this?' he asked frowning faintly.

'Yeah, I'm sure.'

'Ok,' he said, his frown disappearing. 'We got a Hebridean Black baby dragon and a Ukrainian Ironbelly. We have quite a few Hebridean Black dragons and we have some Ukrainian Ironbelly's, we are still hoping to get a baby Antipodean Opaleye though.'

'Why?' Rachel asked interestedly.

'Because the Antipodean Opaleye is native to New Zealand and sometimes Australia and we don't have many of them. The dragon species isn't aggressive, but it's a very docile one and we're finding it hard to get the female to accept the male. She doesn't seem interested, even when she was in heat and in breeding season.'

'Is she sick?' Rachel asked.

Charlie shrugged. 'She could be, but we didn't find anything. Is a bit older than ones we usually tried to breed but we have done it before. Also she has mated before but only once. We're starting to think that they female ones may only breed once and that's it, but we're not sure. We've spoken to dragon keepers in Australia but they only breed them when they're young.'

'Why not get another one then? A younger one?' Rachel asked.

'Well, it's not always that easy. We asked them in Australia but they're a little reluctant, because it's a native species to them. It's normally like that. We're the same with the Hebridean Black's because they're native to Britain.'

'I see. How are the babies then?'

'They're going quite well, though we have to keep a good eye on the Ukrainian Ironbelly, mainly because it's one the most aggressive species of dragon. The Hebridean Black should be fine though. We've brought up many of them and not much seems to go wrong,' he said happily.

Rachel smiled at Charlie. She didn't know much about dragons, but it interested her when Charlie spoke about them. He was passionate and caring about them. She wondered if spoke about anything else like that. Rachel looked at Charlie's arm and she noticed a large, shiny burn.

'What's the burn from?'

'A female Ukrainian Ironbelly, she was a little aggressive and didn't like the male we had given her too much,' he said chuckling.

'Did it hurt?'Oh, yeah, it did, a lot actually. I could probably get it completely healed but I like how it is,' he said smiling still.

Rachel silently agreed with him. She liked it too.

'Anyway, enough talk about me and work. How are things between you and Harry?' he asked leaning on the table.

Rachel shrugged. 'Well, things are getting better but we're not very close still.'

'I'm sure you'll get there, you're twins. One day you'll both be like Fred and George,' Charlie said smiling.

'I don't think we'll ever get that far,' said Rachel chuckling.

At that moment their food and drinks arrived and they started eating. She still wanted to talk though. She wanted to know more about him. 'What's it like having a big family?' she asked after taking a sip from her drink.

This time, Charlie shrugged. 'It's alright. You'd probably get more attention in a smaller family but I know we were all loved the same, there were no favourites.'

'I noticed you and Bill are quite close,' Rachel said.

Charlie swallowed a mouth full before answering. 'Yeah, well, we're quite close in age and we always hung around each other everywhere and we even shared a room, so, that helped.'

Rachel nodded. She didn't think she'd ever understand what it was like to have a family that big. It was just her and Harry, well, and Remus if you include guardians.

'I noticed Remus is protective of you,' Charlie said taking a sip of his drink.

'Yeah, he is. I know he means well, but sometimes it can be annoying. Sometimes I just want to tell him to back off a little.'

For a moment, Rachel thought she said the wrong thing but Charlie just laughed. 'Yeah, you have to do the same with my mum sometimes.'

Rachel smiled. She felt relieved. Not long afterwards they finished their meal and finished their drinks. 'Do you want desert?' Charlie asked.

Rachel quickly shook her head, 'No, I'm fine, thanks.'

She felt a pang of guilt as Charlie took the cheque. 'Um, shouldn't I pay half?' she asked.

Charlie just smiled. 'No, you're my date.'

She still felt bad. He noticed the look on her face. 'How about this, I'll let you pay the next date.'

'Yeah, Ok,' she said slowly.

'Good. Won't be long.'

She watched him get up from the table and walk to the counter. He paid quickly and they both left the restaurant together, hand in hand. Rachel thought it felt weird to be holding hands, weird but nice. She wondered if they were moving too fast, but then once again she realised he was older than her. Would he expect something from her?

She started to feel nervous again as she thought about it. She had never been with a guy before. This was her first date. She wasn't even sure what to do. She was starting to understand why Remus was nervous about her going on date with someone older. Remus was worried about the physical part.

They walked to the movie mostly silent and entered together. She was surprised when Charlie kissed the back of her hand before going to get tickets. It made her blush. She fanned herself with her hand and took a deep breath. She was starting to really like Charlie and she thought things were going very well. Charlie got them a small snack while he was there and they both went to watch the movie.

When the movie ended they left and walked back past the restaurant. Rachel looked at her watch and saw that it was ten minutes to midnight. 'Should get you home before Remus calls the police on me.'

'You know what police are?'

'I may be a pure-blood but after having my dad as a father, you tend to learn many things about Muggles,' Charlie told her.

She should have known. She forgot that Mr. Weasley was quite fond of Muggles, though she couldn't understand why. They didn't seem very different to her, except that they couldn't do magic. They walked to a small alleyway and Rachel took Charlie's arm again and they apparated back to Grimmauld Place.

They waited for the houses to part before walking up the stairs. Rachel wished the night didn't have to end now. She had a great time and she thought it ended to fast but she hoped there would be another date soon.

Charlie took out his wand and tapped it on the large, black, front door. It clicked and clanked several times before they could open it and walk inside. Rachel walked in first and Charlie followed. He didn't completely close the front door though. 'Well, I guess it's good-night time,' Charlie said looking at Rachel.

She nodded at him. 'Yeah, I guess it is. I had a great time.'

'So did I. I hoped there'll be another date,' Charlie said smiling slightly.

'I hope so too,' Rachel said back.

Charlie leaned forward as though to kiss Rachel on the lips but he stopped as someone loudly cleared there throat. They both looked up the stairs but they couldn't see anyone. Rachel rolled her eyes and Charlie chuckled softly.

'I don't think Remus agrees,' he whispered.

He then went to kiss Rachel on the cheek but the same person cleared their throat loudly so that it echoed faintly. Charlie sighed a little and Rachel smiled slightly. She felt awful. She wanted to kiss Charlie, but apparently someone didn't like that idea.

Charlie then moved quickly and kissed Rachel on the back of her hand gently. He opened the door and looked to Rachel. 'Good-night,' he said softly.

'Good-night,' she almost whispered back.

She watched Charlie leave and she closed the front door firmly behind him. She turned to walk up the stairs and then saw Remus at the top. When she reached the top she stood beside him. 'What was that about?' she asked quickly.

'I don't think kissing like that is appropriate on the first date,' Remus replied.

'Why?'

'Because, you'll have plenty of time for that stuff later. Go on, off to bed.'

She kissed Remus on the cheek quickly and said good-night before going to her bedroom. She undressed quickly and got into bed. She rolled onto her side and sighed. She loved this feeling of happiness. She just hoped it lasted for a little bit longer.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

On the train ride back to Hogwarts Rachel sat in a compartment with Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Neville and Luna. She was happy to go back to school but she also wanted to spend more time with Remus and Charlie.

She had gone on two more dates with Charlie after the first one. Charlie kept to his word and he let her pay for the second one. They spent a little bit of time at Grimmauld Place together too, but they made sure not many people were around at the time. Hermione was thrilled to hear about their dates but the others weren't so much. Remus was still unsure about it and Rachel had more than heard enough of the Weasley's complaining about them together, except Bill and Arthur though.

She also had two more lessons with Snape that went quite well. She was happy that she could now perform Occlumency now without much trouble, even when she wasn't expecting it to happen. She wasn't sure if Snape had heard that she was now dating Charlie, but she told herself it didn't matter what he knew and what he didn't know. It really wasn't any of his business.

Rachel had changed into her robes as soon as they got onto the train. Harry then tapped her leg with his foot. 'By the way, I might need you for one more match. I don't know if Demelza will be up for it yet. I'll tell her to not worry about it and get ready for the second one.'

Rachel nodded. 'Ok, that's fine.'

'And Ginny, don't hit her with the quaffle,' Harry whispered.

Rachel looked at Ginny, who turned her head away. She obvious didn't want to hear it. Rachel turned her own head and looked out the window. She enjoyed playing in the last match despite being knocked out; she was hoping to get another chance to play. She turned back to look at the others.

Hermione was reading a transfiguration text-book, Neville was playing with his plant, Ginny was still ignoring everyone, Harry and Ron were playing exploding snap and Luna was... staring at her. Rachel smiled tentatively at her and Luna smiled back. She looked like she was daydreaming. Rachel had heard all about Nargles and all other creatures that she's never heard of. She wondered where Luna was getting all of her information about these animals.

She looked to the compartment door as Theodore and Daphne walked past. They both looked into the compartment and Theodore caught Rachel's eye. She watched them, as did Harry and Ginny. She looked away quickly when Harry looked towards her. Ginny did too.

'I can't believe you made out with him. I hope you've told my brother about your little history with him,' she said.

Rachel spluttered. 'W-what the hell are you talking about? I have never, ever made out with Theodore and I never would. Besides, you should know better than to listen to rumours, especially when it comes from the mouth of a Slytherin.'

Ginny stiffened in her seat and she turned away. Rachel did the same thing. She was a little amazed that no-one said anything. Shouldn't Harry be defending his girlfriend? Or did he disagree with her?

When they reached Hogwarts they all entered the Great Hall and sat together, except Luna though, who walked to Ravenclaw table. Dumbledore made his usual announcements before everyone got stuck into eating. After dinner Rachel walked to Gryffindor Tower with Hermione and they both sat in front of the fire.

'So, does Remus still hate you dating Charlie?'

Rachel shrugged. 'I think he's calmed down about it a little now.'

'That's good,' Hermione said smiling slightly. 'You and Harry seem friendlier,' she commented.

'Yeah, it's much better than before. I understand why he was angry before and why he didn't like me being here.'

'You and Remus talked?' she asked.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, he told me things about himself, you know, when he was younger, and about mum and dad and a little about Hogwarts. Sirius told me things too.'

Hermione seemed to go pink in the cheeks when Rachel mentioned his name. The look didn't go unnoticed. 'What? What's wrong?' she asked quickly.

'Nothing,' Hermione said quietly.

'No, tell me.'

'Well, we heard that you and Sirius were in bed together over the holidays and that Remus caught you,' Hermione said rapidly, as though the words fell from her mouth.

'Yeah, we were in bed together, but it's not what you think. I went to talk to him and I accidentally went to sleep. Nothing happened, Sirius wouldn't do that.'

Hermione nodded but said nothing. Rachel wondered if she believed her. They both sat in silence until Harry and Ron dropped themselves in two armchairs around them. 'What's wrong with you two?' Hermione asked frowning faintly.

Ron just grunted and Harry sighed. 'Nothing, except we just heard Neville's in the hospital wing,' Harry said.

'Why?' Hermione asked quickly, her eyes widening.

'He got a bit mouthy with a Slytherin and she cursed him. She's talking to Dumbledore now,' Ron said resting his hands onto his arms.

'Which Slytherin? Rachel asked.

'Daphne Greengrass,' Harry said almost bitterly.

'She's quite pretty though,' Ron added thoughtfully.

Harry moved quickly and kicked Ron in the legs. Hermione was giving Ron a cold, hard stare. Her eyes narrow and she stood up from her chair. 'I'm off to bed. See you tomorrow,' she said stiffly.

All three of them silent watched her walked up the stairs to her dormitory. Ron became grumpy quickly and went to his dormitory. 'I don't understand,' Rachel said looking at Harry.

'I think they like each other,' Harry whispered to her.

'But they won't admit it?' Rachel asked confused.

'Yes, Hermione stubborn and Ron's… well, stubborn.'

It went quiet between Rachel and Harry. She looked over in the corner where a few third years were trying to play chess. Rachel didn't know how to play chess herself. It had never interested her. Not long after, she went to the dormitory and got ready for bed. Hermione was sitting up on her bed reading again.

'Are you alright?' Rachel asked.

Hermione nodded silently. Rachel sighed faintly and decided to leave it be. She laid down on her bed and went to sleep. She knew Hermione was still awake when she fell asleep.

* * *

When the last month of school began, Rachel began to feel nervous. She couldn't shake a feeling that something was coming and there was no stopping it. She told herself she was being silly but she couldn't help it.

She sat in the Gryffindor common room with Hermione, Harry and Ron. They were all sitting on the armchairs around the fire but it was quiet. She had arrived in the room and Hermione had told her to sit down. She didn't know what it was going to be about. She looked around at the three of them. Ron looked like he was going to be sick, Harry looked like something was troubling him and Hermione looked a little sad… or worried.

'What's going… on?' Rachel asked slowly.

'We would you to inform you on some things,' Hermione said.

'What things?'

'Well, you once asked what we all talk about in secret and I sort of didn't answer the question?' Hermione said slowly.

'Yeah,' Rachel said looking around them all again.

'Harry has now agreed to let you in on it. I've been telling him to for a while but he wasn't sure whether to trust you with the information. Also, you have to promise not to tell anyone,' Hermione said quietly.

'Ok, I promise I won't tell anyone,' Rachel said.

She couldn't help but feel a little confused. What was going on? She did feel like Hermione and Harry kept things from her but Rachel knew it must have had something to do with Voldemort. She knew better than to ask. She wondered how big of a secret this could possibly be.

'To start with.' Hermione took out her wand and she waved it around gently. 'Just a silencing charm,' she said looking at Harry and Ron. 'Anyway, Harry, I think you should explain this.'

Harry shifted in his seat uncomfortably. 'I'm still not sure about sharing this with you but I do trust Hermione and she trusts you without any doubts so, I will too. The tension between Hermione and I has been from a potions book which I was given from Slughorn. It's full of spells and writings, from someone called the Half-Blood Prince, around the actual potion instructions and I was following them and it worked. Some of the spells I've used and I used one on Draco Malfoy and it went badly. It cut him up and I thought I'd killed him but Snape came into the room and he held Draco somehow.'

Harry paused. Rachel was already shocked at hearing this. 'Also, I've been having some private lessons with Dumbledore. He believes that Voldemort has some Horcruxes. They're items that would have a piece of his soul inside of it. Dumbledore believes he has seven of them, but we've only come up with six. I'm sure we still have time.'

He stopped talking. Rachel didn't know what to say. The room went quiet again. 'Harry told us that he and Dumbledore are going to get the next Horcrux today, and they're leaving as soon as we're finished here.'

Rachel still didn't know what to say. 'Um, how many people know about this?' she asked feeling a little perplexed.

'Only us and Dumbledore,' Harry said quietly. Harry then stood up quickly and took a small vial out from his robes. He walked to Hermione and gave it to her. 'Harry we can't-'

'Hermione, I'm going to be with Dumbledore, nothing's going to happen and if something happens here then you share this between you three and Ginny, and anyone else if there's enough.'

Both Hermione and Ron looked as though they were going to argue with Harry but he was quicker. 'I have to go. I'll see you when I get back.'

Harry ran through the portrait hole and the room went quiet again. All they could hear was Harry's footsteps thundering outside. When they disappeared Hermione stood up, the potion still in hand. Hermione called Ginny down into the common room and she re-did the silencing charm. She opened the vial and she conjured a small teaspoon.

'We all have to take a sip, it'll last twelve hours.'

All four of them took the potion when Hermione gave it to them and she took a sip of it last. Rachel felt strange after drinking it. It made her feel warm and she suddenly felt like she could go anywhere and do anything. She looked around at the others. They all had the same expression she did. She knew they were feeling the same sensations.

They all left the common room together and walked near the Great Hall. They all stopping and Rachel jumped slightly as a loud explosion thundered through the school. 'What was that?' Ron asked breathing heavily.

'I don't know,' Hermione replied shakily.

They entered the Great Hall together and found it empty. 'Maybe it's happening somewhere else,' Ginny suggested looking around.

Rachel moved away from the other three slowly. She was nervous and she couldn't handle being around them right now. She was expecting to feel confident with the potion, so why wasn't it working?

There was another explosion and they heard a few people scream. Rachel and the others had crouched from the sound. As they straightened they looked at each other. Hermione took a shaky breath. 'I think we should split up.'

'Are you mental?' Ron asked turning to face her.

Hermione just shrugged. 'We might find out what's happening sooner if we all look in different directions.'

They all finally agreed and left the Great Hall. Rachel headed towards the library, Hermione went to the Astronomy Tower, Ron went to the seventh floor and Ginny went to the first floor. As Rachel walked along the long, narrow corridor alone, she started to feel better. She heard another explosion but she didn't react. It didn't even sound like she was anywhere near the noise.

She kept her wand at her side. She walked further but stopped as she heard a small rustling behind her. She turned to the noise but nothing was there. Her heart began to beat faster. She wasn't sure if she was actually alone. She turned back towards the library and kept walking. She screamed unexpectedly as she tripped over.

She looked behind her, there was nothing there. What had she tripped over? She frowned and grunted angrily as she got up. She yelped as a figure walked towards her. 'Expelliarmus,' she yelled.

Nothing happened the figure blocked it easily. 'Expelliarmus? Was that the best you could come up with?' the person asked.

She recognised that voice. It was Theodore. She exhaled quickly. 'Theodore, what the hell are you doing here?'

'I could ask you the same thing.'

'Is your father here?' Rachel asked as Theodore walked closer to her.

'Why would he be here?'

'I know he's a Death Eater. Why didn't you say anything?'

'Would you parade the fact that one of your parents is a Death Eater? I'm not sure it's actually something to be proud of. Some of us Slytherin's are stopping people who are out of bed,' he told her.

'Why? Are you helping the Dark Lord?'

'Why would we help him?' he asked nonchalantly.

'Can't you give me straight answer?'

'I am,' he said simply.

Rachel sighed. She felt frustrated and angry. 'I don't want to fight with you,' she said slowly.

'Why not? Because of all our little talks? Did you really think I'd change sides, or join you? You and your group really are ignorant.'

'But why help someone who is evil? Do you really think he's going to give you what you want? Everything's he's doing is helping himself. He wants power, he wants to be in control,' Rachel pressed.

'I think there's been enough talk,' he shouted. 'Stupefy!' he yelled.

'Protego,' Rachel shouted quickly.

Theodore's spell bounced off her shield. He scowled heavily. Rachel yelped and jumped out the way as Theodore sent a bright yellow spell towards her. It just missed her. She had no idea what the spell was. She had landed hard on the ground she was sure she had broken a rib. She looked up at Theodore who was smirking greatly.

Before getting up Rachel flicked her wand hand and sent a trip jinx towards Theodore. He wasn't expecting it and with a surprised look on his face, he fell to the ground. He grunted and Rachel got up quickly. 'Expelliarmus,' she yelled before Theodore could recover.

His wand flew from his relaxed hand and flew into her outstretched one. She pocketed his wand and ran to the library. She ran down a few rows before running into one. She leaned against the shelf and waited until her breathing became normal again. She thought the potion would help her from being attacked. She frowned a little. Maybe that's why she was able to jump out of the way quickly enough.

When she felt able she moved from her spot and started looking around the library. There was nothing in there. She heard another loud explosion. She couldn't imagine what was making the noise. She decided to follow the noise since she couldn't see anything here. She went back into the corridor and she noticed that Theodore was gone. Rachel mentally kicked herself. Why didn't she immobilise him?

She ran through the corridor and slowed down once she came to the staircase. She walked further up and up but she stopped when she came to the seventh floor. There was another explosion. It was louder, she was closer this time. Another explosion rang throughout the school and Rachel turned around. It was coming from the Astronomy Tower. She took off in that direction quickly. When she was near the Tower she stopped. There were bright lights bouncing off all the walls around the corner.

This was where the battle was. She took a deep breath and turned the corner, her wand at the ready. A spell immediately flew past her head but she didn't move. She turned to the person who sent it. He was wearing a long, black cloak and a silver mask, which covered his whole face. She slashed the air with her wand and it seemed to cut the person across the chest.

He howled in pain and fell to the floor. A small amount of blood travelled from his wound. What had she done? She was about to approached the person before she was bowled over. She hit the floor and cried out in pain. There was a loud growl and she looked up. She recognised the person who knocked her over. It was Fenrir Greyback.

He was bent over and he growled towards her again. Rachel panicked and tried to crawl away quickly. She yelped as she felt someone pulling on her leg. Greyback was pulling her back to him. His growl was getting louder and angrier. She yelped louder but no-one seemed to help her. She lifted her wand and pointed it at Greyback, but she couldn't stop herself shaking.

'Stupefy!' she yelled.

The spell missed Greyback and he smiled up at her. She tried to kick him away but nothing work. As she tried to yank her leg away from him, his long, yellow nails scratched her calf muscle. She screamed in pain and she felt tears roll down her cheeks. She suddenly wondered if the luck potion she took was having no affect on her at all.

Suddenly Rachel could feel herself move again. She backed herself up against one of the walls and she cowered where she was. She couldn't move. She was scared, petrified. She didn't want to be here anymore.

She realised it was Bill who had released her from Greyback. Bill was now running from Greyback while trying to curse him but everything seemed to miss Greyback. She watched as they both ran up a flight of stairs and disappeared. What if Greyback killed him?

Rachel managed to move away from the battle though she had lost her wand in the process. She made her way to the Entrance Doors and she stopped there. Her feet felt rooted to the spot. There were tears running down her face. She didn't wipe them away. She felt like a coward. The potion might not have worked.

A loud noise echoed through the Entrance Hall and Rachel yelped as she was grabbed by a large figure. 'Help! Help me!' she screamed.

The person who had grabbed her was running towards the Hogwarts gate. She didn't know the person who had grabbed her. When they group slowed down for a moment to open the gate Rachel kicked the person that was holding her in the shins. The person hissed and released her. Rachel ran back towards the castle but she heard someone yelling.

'Get her! The Dark Lord wants her!'

Rachel couldn't hear anything but her own beating heart within her ears. She was panting as she continued to run. She could hear thunderous footsteps behind her, chasing her. She screamed again as she was grabbed and forced to the ground. She could hear Hagrid somewhere close by.

'Let her go, yer gruffs.'

Rachel kept screaming until one of the men placed his hands over her mouth. 'Shut it before I shut you up permanently.'

They left through the gates and disapparated instantly.

* * *

When they landed in another place, it was dark. Rachel didn't know where they were, but the people she was with apparently knew where they were as they all silently walked in the same direction. Rachel moved a little and the man holding her didn't object.

They looked to be on a normal street which was full of houses, though most places were large, like mansions. They eventually reached the end of the street and they turned into the driveway of the house at the very end. It was surrounded by large hedges and there was a long line of mist before the front door.

The Death Eater holding Rachel placed his right arm around her and he held onto her tightly. She watched as all the Death Eaters raised their left arms, in a salute, as they passed through the mist. Rachel frowned but she said nothing. Rachel looked up at the mansion. It was large and dark. She couldn't help but wonder who lived here.

After they entered the house, Rachel didn't see much of it as she was bowled through many rooms before being pushed into another room. It was very small, and cramped. It was dark and it didn't smell very nice. The door was closed behind her and it clinked loudly. There were no windows in the room. Rachel walked over to one side and sat on the floor.

When she was alone fell into fresh tears. What had just happened? It all felt like a blur now. How did she get into this position? Rachel looked at her hands. They were dirty, bloody and they were shaking. She wasn't sure she had ever felt so scared. What would they want with her? Was it because she was Harry's sister? She couldn't help but feel it was her own fault that she got caught. She ran away from the battle, she felt like a coward.

What felt like hours later the door to her cell opened and someone else was thrown in with her. It was another girl. Rachel couldn't help but stare at her. She was young, maybe fifteen. She looked scared. She didn't know where she was either. She had long, dirty blonde hair and hazel eyes. Her skin was dirty, except for her face though, it looked relatively clean.

'Who are you?' Rachel asked.

The girl didn't answer her. She wouldn't even look at her. 'Are you a witch?'

The girl then looked at her, as though she had said something rude or mean. 'I don't know what you're talking about,' she said. Her voice was hoarse and croaky. She then looked away from Rachel and stared at the floor between her legs. She must be a Muggle. Rachel kept her eyes on her. Why would they capture a Muggle?

After another few hours the door opened to the cell again. The Muggle girl immediately moaned in protest and moved away, trying to move further into the corner. Rachel looked up at the person. It was Professor Snape. His black eyes passed over the Muggle and went to Rachel.

'Get up,' he said in a low voice.

Rachel did as she was told and Snape left the room, Rachel followed. They walked up some stairs and it led into a living-room. The room was full of people. Their eyes followed Rachel as she walked through the room with Snape. They went into a hallway and walked up another flight of stairs. They entered a room and Snape told Rachel to sit down. She walked to an armchair and she sat down. Snape closed the door and locked with his wand. He turned around quickly and Rachel didn't get much time to react.

'Legilimens,' he shouted.

Rachel screamed and she fell onto the ground, on her knees. Memories flooded her mind. Charlie kissing her hand after their first date, Remus hugging her when she came back, her fights with Harry, her laughing with Hermione, they kept coming. When they finally ended Rachel stopping breathing, she slowly opened her eyes and she saw the floor. She removed her hands from her ears and he looked up at Snape. His black eyes were boring down on her like a ton of bricks.

'How do you expect to do it when you can't do it now!' he shouted in absolute fury.

Tears flowed down Rachel's face. She was going to die here, she could feel it. 'I don't know,' she wept.

Snape grunted and moved away from her, he seemed angry. 'Where are we?' she asked wiping her face.

'We're at the Malfoy Manor. The Dark Lord has taken this place his refuge. You will be safe if I stay with you.'

'Why am I even here?' she asked in a pain voice.

'Before the Death Eater attack on Hogwarts we had instructions to kill Dumbledore and capture you.'

'Is... Is Dumbledore d-dead?' she asked stuttering.

Snape looked away and nodded. 'Who killed him?' she asked in shock.

'I did,' Snape said quietly.

Rachel spluttered air. He couldn't have? Wasn't he on their side? More tears escaped her eyes and she turned away from Snape. She didn't want to look at him. 'Why?' she whispered.

'Because it needed to be done.'

'Needed? It needed to be done. There has to be a better reason,' Rachel cried.

Snape turned slowly and looked at Rachel. He looked sad for a moment before his face turned back into its usual scowl. 'The Dark Lord wants to speak with you,' he said softly. 'Get up.'

Rachel made a face and stood up. She looked at Snape, was he telling her the truth? Had he told her the truth or was he playing a sick game? He led her back down the grand staircase and they went back into the living-room. It was still full of people, some were masked and some weren't. They were all sitting at a long, silver table and at the end of the table sat the Dark Lord.


	14. Chapter 14

**Warning - **If you have any problems with rape and graphic sexual content then please do not read this chapter!

* * *

Chapter Fourteen

'Bring her to me, Severus,' the Dark Lord instructed.

Snape grabbed Rachel by her arm roughly and took her to the Dark Lord. 'Kneel,' he hissed roughly. Rachel reluctantly did as she was told. The Dark Lord leaned forwards and ran his finger down Rachel's tear stained cheek.

Rachel moved her head roughly, a burst of anger exploded through her. 'Don't touch me, murderer,' she spat.

A few Death Eaters gasped and started making their way towards Rachel but the Dark Lord held up a pale, white hand, his face twisting into an evil smile. 'Have anything else to say, my dear?' he asked.

'I wouldn't want to lower myself by talking to you too much, Voldemort,' she said callously.

Voldemort's evil smile disappeared. He looked down on Rachel with contempt. 'You must be quite brave to say my name.'

'It's not bravery, it's just a name.'

'You might want to learn some respect,' Voldemort said in a low voice. 'You and your brother are just like your meddling parents, brave and arrogant fools until the end. I thought about killing you, but why should I deny my followers someone so young and ... tasty. If you're lucky I might not feed you to Greyback. I heard he's already taken a slice from you.'

On Voldemort's orders Snape lifted Rachel to her feet and turned her around. Voldemort lifted her pants and poked his wand at the open wound that she had received from Greyback. 'I know he's scratches can hurt, just be grateful he didn't bite you.'

Rachel screamed as his wand went through her wound. Blood poured from it and the Death Eaters in the room began jeering and cackling. 'Face me,' Voldemort said firmly after removing his wand away from her.

Snape turned her around again and Voldemort stood up from his chair. The room went silent as every pair of eyes was on Voldemort and Rachel. 'You being born as Harry's twin has now become a blessing for me as I'm sure you know. I need your brother and you know where he is but the best part is I won't have to find him, because he will come to rescue you, I'm sure.'

The room went quiet again. No-one else dared to speak. Voldemort chuckled faintly. Rachel started to feel a pressure building in her head. She suddenly screamed and feel to the ground with pain. Memories flooded her mind once again and she was shocked by how easily Voldemort accomplished it. He had entered her mind without any trouble and without saying the incantation. She hadn't expected that.

When it ended Snape had let go of her and she was kneeling on the floor. 'A good position for you,' Voldemort said.

His followers laughed and Rachel felt her face go red. 'Tell me, are you a virgin?' Voldemort asked.

If possible, Rachel's face went even redder. She didn't want to lose her virginity like this. It was like a nightmare which was coming true. Snape spoke up first. 'My Lord, I would like to take her, if it was alright with you.'

Rachel's mouth opened in shock and she looked up at Snape but he was staring intently at the Dark Lord. 'And why do you want that, Severus?' Voldemort asked staring into Snape's black eyes.

'I have had her insolent brother in my class for the last six years and I would like a little piece of revenge,' he said harshly.

'Very well, Severus, you may take her, on condition that you do it here and let people watch,' Voldemort said slowly. He looked to Rachel and smiled before looking at Snape again and nodding once.

Snape returned the nod and he walked over to the other side of the room, where there was more space and he took Rachel with him. He turned her so she faced him. Rachel looked up into his black eyes and her green ones were once again full of tears.

'Please Professor, please don't do this,' she begged inaudibly.

Snape said nothing. He reached for her robes but she fought back. She pushed his arms away and backed herself away from him. One tear left her eye and rolled down her cheek. The Death Eaters who stayed in the room to watch jeered. Snape's face contorted into anger and he moved quickly and swung his hand out, smacking Rachel across the face.

She fell to the ground hard and she cried out. Snape walked to her and kicked her legs. 'Get up,' he said forcefully.

Rachel got up and Snape shoved her against the wall. He looked into her face and saw his love, lust and desire. He took out his wand and waved them quickly before placing it back. Chains had flown from his wand and chained Rachel to the wall. She screamed and it didn't stop until Snape gagged her.

With one go he ripped her robes off her body and threw them to the ground, they landed in a heap. He grabbed Rachel's chin and forced her to look up at him. He moved quickly, the gag feel from her mouth and before Rachel could do anything Snape had captured her lips with his own. Her body stiffened but she was forced to relax slightly as Snape forced his tongue inside her mouth and dominated.

He placed a hand behind her head and pulled her closer to him, deepening the kiss. Rachel moaned involuntarily into Snape's mouth and she mentally kicked herself. Snape broke the kiss and moved one step back from her. He lengthened her chains and then he unzipped his pants while he kept his eyes on Rachel.

'Get on your knees and suck me,' he ordered.

Rachel tried to move back more but nothing worked, she was already against the wall. Snape took his wand and pointed it at Rachel. 'Do it before I make this a worse experience for you.'

Rachel decided it could be worse. This could be happening with someone she didn't know, or worse someone she didn't like. At least in this case she knew Snape and hoped that he was still on her side and that this was an act he had to perform perfectly so they wouldn't be found out.

Rachel got on her knees and moved closer to Snape. 'Take it out and suck it and if you bite, you'll be sorry.'

Rachel felt nervous. She had never done anything like this before. She hesitantly reached inside Snape's pants and brought out his half-hard cock. His cock was pristine and pale. Rachel moved herself a little closer and bent her head forward, her eyes dropping to avoid looking at Snape's face, which had turned hungry and lustful.

Snape sighed almost appreciatively when his cock was fully immersed inside Rachel's mouth. Her tongue stroked and her lips sucked, Snape began to harden. She felt one of his hand move to her head and wrap his fingers in her long black hair, which was soft, thick and shiny.

Rachel started to feel as though she was going to gag and she brought her hands up to Snape's groin but he slapped them away. 'No, just use your mouth.'

Rachel did as she was told and she continued to suck as best she could. More tears flowed down her cheeks but she kept her eyes open and kept them focused on the sparse hair around Snape's groin. Snape pushed her head closer for a few moments before he yanked her mouth off his cock. He pushed her back against the wall and he joined her. He leaned his body on hers and kissed her roughly.

Snape picked Rachel up and she placed her legs around his waist. She wanted to tell him to stop, she wanted to scream but in the end she knew it would get her nowhere. This was going to happen no matter what she did or didn't do.

Snape pressed himself into her and Rachel yelped in pain. He pulled out slowly and rammed into her forcefully and Rachel half-screamed. The rest of it was swallowed by Snape who kissed her roughly again.

All the people watching jeered and were cheering for Snape to be more rough but Rachel wasn't sure if he was listening but she knew when he started pounding into her powerfully and seemingly without my effort, that it was having an effect. Rachel grabbed Snape and wrapped her arms around him as he still pumped into her ruthlessly.

She breathed desperately fast through her nostrils, a pitiful moaning form her throat. Her cunt felt like it clamped shut onto Snape like a vice, and she shook like an earthquake as the groan became a hoarse and nearly silent shriek. The pain within her was becoming unbearable but she still had a small pleasurable feeling running down her spine.

She then felt herself being pushed and pounded harder and faster and much more urgently, Rachel then heard the soft low grunt of undeniable pleasure as Snape spilled himself into her. He then released her quickly and she fell onto the ground in a wet mess. Many people laughed. Rachel didn't enjoy one moment of that.

It was humiliating and all she wanted now was for the floor to open up and swallow her whole. 'Well done, Severus, that was quite enjoyable to watch,' Voldemort said smiling faintly. 'Place her back in the cell.'

Snape nodded once and fixed himself up before grabbing Rachel by her hair and dragging her back to the cell. Once inside, he dumped her inside and he left the room without a word. Rachel backed herself against the wall and cried. They hadn't given her clothes back. The Muggle girl was still in the room and she was watching Rachel but she said nothing.

Rachel felt disgusted with herself. Snape had just raped her, in front of the Dark Lord and his followers. She was used by him. He knew her better than most people, from all the time they had spent together during their lessons. She couldn't remember Snape ever telling her that he was or had been a Death Eater, though something about it felt strange, as though she had forgotten something.

She hoped Harry and the others would come for her soon. They must have realised that she was missing.

* * *

A few days later, Rachel was still in the cell with the Muggle girl. They had only been given food once. Rachel had given half of her food to the Muggle girl, she looked extremely hungry. Rachel wasn't sure if anything had happened, or if they had forgotten about them, though Rachel wished they had.

Later that night, Rachel was dragged out her cell blindfolded. She felt herself dragged upstairs and into several more rooms. She was then pushed unceremoniously onto a large bed. Rachel was still naked and she had gotten dirtier from not showering. Her hair had become matted and oily and her lips were now dry and cracked.

When the blindfold was removed she was alone in a bedroom with two Death Eaters. They were talking amongst each other. One of them had long brownish hair and dark eyes, he was pale and he was pockmarked and stooped, though he was still quite tall. The other Death Eater was pale, with short black hair and he was tall also and appeared to have quite a good body. Rachel tore her eyes away from them and she removed one of the bed covers and she covered herself with it.

The two Death Eaters turned to her after a short time. 'You have to be a good girl while Wally gives you a nice shower,' the pockmarked one said in a soft voice.

She looked up at the bigger man. She got off the bed and he grabbed her arm and pulled her into the bathroom. He turned the shower on and pushed Rachel straight in even though it was cold. She watched as the Death Eater undressed and joined her. The water heated up quickly and he immediately stroked her body. He ran his hand over her buttocks and rubbed in between the cheeks.

'You look like you want to ask a question?'

Rachel was bending forwards slightly and she had one hand on the wall to support herself. 'Do y-you have a n-name?' she asked exhaling sharply when a couple of his fingers entered her backside hole.

'Walden Macnair,' he said firmly. 'You have a great body for a half-blood,' he commented as he continued to feel her.

Rachel shuddered faintly. 'What about t-the o-other g-guy?' she asked, her breathing hitching in her throat.

'Augustus Rookwood,' he informed her.

Rachel nodded and decided to say no more. She didn't want to anger him, she just wanted to know their names. She wasn't really sure why but maybe it might help her later if she survived this.

'Take the soap and clean me with it, thoroughly,' he instructed her.

Rachel nodded again and she took the soap off a small shelf. For some reason she felt nervous. She hesitated slightly as she began with his chest. He was very muscles and she couldn't help but noticed that Macnair had two nipple rings with a chain linking them.

'Relax, I don't bite,' he said his dark eyes watching her intensely. 'Well, unless you want me to of course.'

Rachel then moved and watched his back, neck and bottom, though it made her face go red. Macnair just smiled as he watched her. She then moved back to his front and washed his legs. 'Don't forget the important part,' he said teasingly.

Rachel swallowed hard and reached up and took his cock in her hands gently. She massaged the full length of his cock with the soap and he moaned ever so lightly. He put his hand within Rachel's wet hair and massaged her head. When it was clean Rachel stood up again and Macnair took the soap from her.

He then started to rub and scrub Rachel clean. He started with her neck, shoulders and then made his way down her arm and then to her breasts. He smiled as he washed them. Rachel didn't watch. She kept her eyes on the green tiled wall. He then washed her stomach, then reached around to wash her back. He then made his way to her legs, then back up to her bum and pussy. Rachel couldn't help but squirm slightly as he washed her there.

He finished up quickly and placed the soap back in its place. He turned Rachel around so she faced the wall. 'Bend over,' he ordered, grunting slightly.

She bent over slightly and Macnair stood directly behind her. He rubbed her pussy and Rachel's breathing hitched. 'Hold still, it could get slippery,' he said gruffly.

She said nothing. Rachel kept her hand on the tile wall and kept her eyes focused on one spot. This was going to happen again. Was every Death Eater going to touch her? She had hoped it was only going to be Snape and no-one else but she hadn't been that lucky.

He placed his hands on Rachel's hips and he slammed into her hard. Rachel screamed and it echoed on all four walls. Macnair chuckled and fucked Rachel hard and fast with great force. His cock was bigger than Severus'. This was only her second time and it still hurt, plus she was still tender from the first time.

Macnair didn't last long side of her. He groped her breasts and grunted again as he came inside of her. He withdrew from her body swiftly after he came and he let the water from the shower clean the stickiness from their bodies. Macnair then turned off the shower and he got out first. He took a white towel and wrapped it around his waist. He then grabbed another one and threw it to Rachel, who wrapped it around her own body.

He cocked a finger at her and she followed him wordlessly. They went back into the bedroom and Rookwood was there waiting for them, sitting on the bed. He looked to them as they entered the room. 'Is she all clean?' he asked in a bored voice.

'Yes, she's all clean,' Macnair announced proudly.

'Good,' Rookwood said standing up. He took out his wand and waved it. The bed disappeared and was replaced with a long table. Rachel frowned, what the hell were they doing? Were they going to use a table? Wouldn't a bed be more comfortable?

Macnair grabbed the towel from around Rachel and pulled it away. She yelped and was then pushed towards Rookwood who made her face the table and he bent her over it. 'Such a pretty site,' he commented, sneering.

The tears and feelings of humiliation came back to Rachel. How much longer did she have to put up with this? She wanted to be saved; she wanted the Order to find her.

She heard Rookwood undo his pants and they fell down his legs slightly. He entered her without any preparation and without any warning. He began to violently rape her. Rachel was grasping the sides of the table so hard that her arms were quivering, her head bent forwards, her midnight black hair falling around her eyes, her body jerking as Rookwood thrust into her over and over.

Rachel made no sound, though it must have hurt her to keep silent, as Rookwood was being anything but gentle about it.

Macnair chortled delightedly and walked up to the table. He looked over Rachel's head, along her back and met with Rookwood's eyes, he then bent down to stare into Rachel's face.

'She's crying,' he declared with unmistakable glee. He swiped one long finger under Rachel's eyes, then held it up under the light, so that the liquid gleamed. 'Poor little Potter,' he crooned. 'Don't you like Augustus? He likes you.'

Both Death Eaters laughed, their white faces cracking into ghastly smiles.

'Fuck you,' Rachel snarled.

Macnair caressed her cheek softly and Rachel tossed her head and tried to bite him. 'No, you fucking don't,' Rookwood said. He twisted his fingers in Rachel's hair and roughly jerked her head back. Rachel gasped at the unnatural curve her body had been forced into. Rookwood bent his head down by Rachel's ear and whispered, 'Be nice.'

Rookwood thrusted into Rachel's body one last time with a grunt, while Rachel made an anguished, tortured sound of pain and with a satisfied sigh, Rookwood withdrew himself from Rachel's body and he fastened his trousers.

'She's good, isn't she?' Macnair asked with a gleam in his eye.

'Very good,' Rookwood agreed.

They both laughed again and Rachel flinched at the sound. It was cold and cruel. The Order were never going to find her here. They would never think of this place being their headquarters. It was too obvious, too noticeable. She frowned, but then hadn't they found her? Her mind raced with images of worse happening to her. She let more tears fall.

She yelped as she was suddenly moved and thrown onto the floor. She had wondered if could or was going to get any worse and apparently it was. She tried to move but she knew it was pointless. She kept still and cried out every time she was kicked her hit with a curse.

When her beating had finished she was dragged downstairs into the living-room again. This time there seemed to be more people here. She looked to one corner where she saw Draco. He wouldn't look at her. The Dark Lord was once again in the throne-like chair at the end of the table. Macnair held onto Rachel as she was brought to her knees before Voldemort again.

'I have had a change of plans,' he said not looking at her.

The room was quiet, all could be heard was a low hissing sound and suddenly a heavy sounding object being dragged along the floor. Rachel couldn't bring herself to turn and look but she felt the thing some closer to her. She knew it was a snake but she wasn't sure how long or how big it was. Her breathing became heavy and irregular as the snake came closer and stopped near her.

She turned and wanted to scream. The thing was sitting right next to her. 'Don't worry, she only bites if I tell her,' Voldemort said in a low hiss.

Rachel continued to shudder, she almost missed what Voldemort said. 'We are going to let the Order find you. I have decided we won't need you after all. Like I said before, I thought about killing you but that would be too easy. I want Harry to fall and I want him to suffer before he does so. Seeing you this way might be what start him on his new journey.'

It went quiet again. 'Do you have anything to say?' the Dark Lord asked her.

Rachel shook her head and said nothing. She wanted this to be over with. Voldemort seemed very disinterested in her. 'Severus, take her back to her cell. I'll see what will be done with her tomorrow.'

Snape nodded and moved towards Rachel. She was limp as he picked her up in his arms and walked them both to her cell. He placed her on the floor and sat her up against the wall. Rachel gradually opened her eyes and they were met by Snape's black ones. He was still standing and looking down on her.

'Why aren't you getting me out of here?' Rachel asked, her voice cracking slightly.

'I can't,' Snape replied.

Another tear fell down Rachel's cheek. She thought that dying would be better than staying here. 'Why? I thought you were a member of the Order?'

'I can't,' Snape repeated.

Rachel groaned in annoyance. She turned her head slowly, even though it hurt and then she turned her head back. She coughed a few times and groaned again. The Muggle girl was no longer there. 'Where is the other girl?' Rachel choked out.

'She's entertaining a few of the others,' Snape said.

Other Death Eaters, Rachel thought to herself. 'Why is she here? Isn't she a Muggle?'

'Yes,' Snape replied. 'The Dark Lord prefers we use people who have no knowledge of our world. It's safer and easier.'

Snape watched Rachel for a little bit longer before he left the room without saying anything else. Rachel closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. She wasn't sure what would happen tomorrow but she didn't want to die. She wanted to look at Remus' and Charlie's faces again. She wanted to see Harry at least one more time.

* * *

The next morning when Rachel woke up she looked the other side of the small room. The Muggle girl was still not there. Rachel hoped nothing bad had happened. She didn't have to wait much longer for an answer. The door to the cell opened and a man appeared at the door. He was holding something another person. He entered the room and Rachel looked up at him. She didn't recognise him.

He was tallish, with grey hair and pallid skin. Rachel hadn't seen him before. He leered at Rachel as he entered the room. He placed the Muggle girl on the floor roughly. The girl made no sound. She moved away from the man as fast as she could and huddled in the corner. The Death Eater watched the Muggle girl before turning his attention to Rachel. He made his way to her and picked her up by her arm.

He led her outside and on the way Rachel turned back to looked at the girl in the corner. She was dirty and there was blood up her arms and all down her legs. She was crying silently and her body was shaking. She didn't look good at all. Rachel felt sad for her.

She was taken in the living-room once again and pushed to her knees at the Dark Lord's feet. Rachel shivered slightly. She was still naked and her flesh had turned goosy. 'I think it's time to let to go back to your loved ones. I have a plan devised and I shall not being needing you. Enjoy your time with your werewolf, while you can.'

Rachel looked up at his white face. She couldn't believe anyone could turn out this evil and horrible. She wanted to claw his eyes out but she knew she wouldn't even get half-way. She bit her tongue and decided to not respond. Voldemort stood up from his chair. 'Dolohov, Amycus, Rodolphus and Yaxley, I want you to take her somewhere, make a fuss and send the Dark Mark into the sky. It should frightened people and I'm sure the Order will want to see what happened. Wait there for them, see if you can kill any.'

Both men nodded and moved towards Rachel. Dolohov grabbed her and they gagged and bound her before moving off into the darkness. At the moment Rachel wondered what would happen to the Muggle girl. Will they hurt her?

The Death Eaters took Rachel to London and Dolohov dropped Rachel onto the hard ground. She groaned and could only watch as they terrorised the small village they were in. Women screamed and cried for their children and the men tried fighting the Death Eaters off, but failed. Most people were killed and the four Death Eaters went back for Rachel, who was still lying in the same spot.

Dolohov and Rodolphus gave Rachel another beating and they set the Dark Mark off high into the sky. It turned the sky an emerald green. They laid Rachel in the middle of the dead bodies and they left, leaving Rachel crying and broken.

* * *

Hours later, Rachel opened her eyes. She hadn't moved. She was still in the same place as before, though the smell was now worse. The bodies around her were already starting to decay. Why was no-one here? Was had help not arrived yet. A tear left her eye and she decided to see if she could move herself. She managed to sit up after a great deal of difficulty.

She looked around but there wasn't much to see. It was dark and the Dark Mark was still in the sky and glowing bright green. She also couldn't help but notice that she was still naked. She looked over into a corner and saw a dead body that was wearing a long black jacket. She cringed. She started to hate herself.

She eventually got the ropes off her and the gag and crawled her way over and she gently took the jacket from the body. A part of her was glad that the person was completely dead. She cried softly and she put the jacket on. It was cold to wear. She tried to stand but she fell down again and she screamed as she hit the ground. The sound echoed through the village.

Rachel jumped as a voice travelled through the darkness. 'Is someone alive?'

She frowned. She knew that voice. It sounded so familiar. The person called again. 'Hello? Please answer. Say something again, or scream.' It was a man and he sounded desperate and frantic. She could hear a noise, as though they were searching through all the rubble for the person who screamed.

She knew. 'Sirius?' she called out loudly.

'Rachel?' he called back.

The noise of the searching became more frantic. Rachel crawled out from the corner and moved somewhere where they might see her better. She collapsed. She couldn't move anymore. She thought the darkness was spinning.

'She's over here. She's here,' Sirius' voice cried out.

Sirius reached Rachel quickly and he bent down beside her. He looked her over quickly and wiped some blood off her face with his hand. 'Are you alright?'

Rachel didn't answer him. She couldn't. The words gurgled in her throat and Sirius' eyes widened. 'Kingsley!' he cried. 'We have to get her to St. Mungo's.'

Kingsley came running to them. 'I'll take her, you cannot go there. Go back to Order and tell them we have found her.'

Sirius seemed to panic and he didn't want to leave Rachel. 'Go,' Kingsley shouted.

Sirius sighed and turned on his heel and apparated back to Grimmauld Place. Kingsley bent down and gently picked Rachel up and settling her in him arms. He took his wand out and as careful as possible he apparated them to St. Mungo's hospital.

* * *

When Rachel woke up she felt confused. She was lying on a bed with white sheets and she was in an all white room. Was she dead? The door to her room opened and a person in white came into the room. Rachel looked at the person nervously. The woman smiled at her.

'It's Ok dear, you're in the hospital. I will let your family know you're awake.'

The large, blonde woman walked back out the door and it didn't take long for it to open again. Though the people now coming, she recognised, it was Remus, Harry and Hermione. They all looked worried and scared. Hermione and Harry stayed back and they let Remus see her close up first. He hugged her tightly and Rachel winced.

'Sorry,' he whispered. He stroked her hair gently once. 'Are you alright?' he asked in a tight voice.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah,' she said lying back down on the bed. Remus smiled, 'We'll let you rest and we'll talk tomorrow, Ok?'

Rachel just nodded again and Remus left the room with Harry and Hermione in tow.

* * *

At Grimmauld Place, Remus stared at the table. Kingsley was giving them the report from the healer and he wasn't sure Harry and Hermione, plus everyone else in the Order needed to hear it. It was such a personal and humiliating thing that Rachel went through.

Kingsley took a deep breath. 'Miss Potter was taken by Death Eaters, namely Severus Snape on the night of the battle. We do not know where she was taken, nor do we still. It had been a few weeks and Miss Potter is still in hospital and she still refuses to talk.'

Remus was about to say something but Sirius nudged him. Kingsley noticed but he continued anyway. 'The healer has told us that Miss Potter was beaten and ... raped several times, though we don't know by whom. Other things may have happened though like I said, Rachel won't talk to anyone.'

Kingsley stopped talking and he sat back down at the table. The room was deathly silent. Remus was still staring at the table. Harry and Hermione looked at each other, then looked at the floor. Other people were either fidgeting or staring blankly at something. Sirius was staring at the window. He was the one that found her and he had informed Remus.

Remus was already distraught that Rachel had been taken and he didn't know where she was. Sirius hated having to tell Remus when he found her. It wasn't because he had found her but because of how she looked and what she had probably been through. Sirius had thought Remus had gone greyer since it all happened, and that he's face has more premature lines.

It made Sirius wonder why Rachel wouldn't talk. Does she know how much Remus has gone through? What went through his mind, the fact that Remus blamed himself for Rachel being taken. It also made Sirius wonder if Rachel knew how much she was loved and why she wouldn't tell them what happened.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

Several weeks later, Rachel was still in the hospital. She knew that the first term of her seventh year had started a few weeks ago. She still had not spoken to anyone. All she did was sleep. She ate and used the bathroom only when she needed to. She found the white hospital room to be sterile and isolated. The healers didn't bother her and Remus never pressured her to talk. He would just sit with her if she said nothing.

As though on cue, she heard Remus' voice outside in the hallway. 'Is she awake.'

The healer said nothing but she must have nodded. 'Thanks.'

The door to her room opened and she heard soft footsteps walked closer to her. If Rachel closed her eyes tight enough she could picture being back in the cell. She didn't want to be back there but she couldn't help but picture it and think about it.

Remus took a seat beside her bed and he looked her over. Rachel had her back to him. She wasn't too interested in talking to him today either. 'I have to take you home tomorrow,' Remus said in a gentle voice.

'Why?' Rachel croaked out.

It was only the second thing she had said to Remus since being found. 'Well, you cannot stay here. It would be better for you at headquarters.'

Rachel nodded but said nothing. She still had her back to him. A tear slid down her cheek. She wasn't interested in going anywhere and she wasn't interested in talking yet. She felt like being captured had destroyed her. Nothing fascinated her and nothing kept her attention for long. She wanted things to go back to normal but she knew it wouldn't be easy. It was one reason why she didn't want to leave the hospital. She would be forced to go back to normal.

When Rachel arrived back at Grimmauld Place she went straight to her room. She ignored everything said to her and she closed her bedroom door behind her. She took a deep breath and looked around. She wondered if she was going to go back to Hogwarts. She knew it would have to done eventually.

Within minutes she heard the bedroom door open. It was Remus. He brought her bags into the room and he closed the door. He approached her bed and looked her over. 'Are you feeling alright?'

Rachel just nodded. 'Do you need anything?' he asked.

This time Rachel just shook her head. Remus sighed lightly before leaving the room. Rachel did feel a little bad but she didn't feel like talking. She wanted to be left alone with her thoughts. No-one else could understand what she went through.

The next day when Rachel woke up she shivered. She felt cold and alone. She got up from her bed and went downstairs. Remus was in the living-room alone. He looked up, startled, when she entered the room. 'Are you alright?' he asked once again.

He jumped up from the couch and went to Rachel. 'I'm fine,' she said very quietly. 'I just want to sit with someone.'

Remus took her hand gently and they both sat on the couch together. He placed an arm around her and Rachel rested her head on his shoulder. Remus didn't say anything else; he decided to wait until she was ready to talk. He picked up his book and began reading again but he was feeling a little happier that Rachel had come to him for something, no matter how small it was.

When it had become dark Sirius came into the room from upstairs and he stopped when he entered the living-room. He said nothing but he slowly moved into the kitchen. Remus' eyes watched him but Rachel never looked up. The three of them had dinner in the kitchen together but there was an uncomfortable silence, even Rachel noticed it.

The next night when Rachel went downstairs again she looked around but she couldn't find Remus anywhere. She ran into Sirius in the living-room. 'Where's Remus?' she asked softly.

'He's doing a job for the Order, he should be home soon.'

Rachel nodded and went to go back upstairs but the living-room door closed with a slam before her. She turned back around and looked at Sirius. His wand was out and he had closed it. He stood up and looked around quickly before looking at Rachel. 'How long are you going to do this?' he asked.

'What are you talking about?'

'Do you know what Remus had been through? Do you know what he has been putting himself through?'

'Do you remember what I've been through?' Rachel screamed at him. 'I was the one that was captured and taken on the night of the battle, I was humiliated and rape for the Death Eaters own sick pleasure. They were originally going to use me as bait but then decided they didn't need me anymore so they raped me again before letting me go. They dragged me to a village where I watched them murder almost everyone before they stripped me and humiliated me some more, they then left me there to die.'

'I know what you went through was horrible but the Order care about you and you were never going to die there. They left the Dark Mark there for a reason, they knew we would see what happened,' Sirius said loudly.

'Then why did it take you so long to find me?' she asked shakily.

'Did you see the state of that village? It was a mess, there was blood, possessions and bodies everyone. You looked to be just another of them.'

The room went quiet and Rachel felt angry. Why was he questioning how she felt? What she had gone through? Sirius moved forwards and he had barely touched Rachel before she moved away. 'Don't touch me,' she hushed.

'Like I said, what you went through was horrible, but don't forget about Remus,' he said gently.

'What do you mean?'

'He blames himself for what happened.'

'Why?'

'Because he is your guardian, he is responsible for you and he felt as though he let you down. Plus if you had never come back this wouldn't have happened.'

'You think I shouldn't have come back either?' Rachel asked heatedly.

Sirius shrugged. 'Maybe you shouldn't have or maybe you should have been here from the start but the point is you can't keep ignoring everyone, especially Remus. He cares about you and I think it unfair for you to treat him this way.'

Rachel went to the living-room door and pounded on it hard and began to scream to let her out. Sirius walked over and grabbed her by the arm and dragged her into the room. Rachel managed to push him off and she backed herself into the corner of the room. Sirius started to make his way to her again.

'Get away from me,' she screamed.

Sirius stopped. 'When are you going to see that you're not the only victim in this?'

'Just leave me alone,' she shouted.

The door to the living-room then burst open and a dishevelled looking Remus came into the room. He had his wand out and he pushed past Sirius and looked at Rachel. He then turned on the other man. 'Sirius, what the hell are you doing? She's been through enough.'

'And what about what you've been through and Harry and Hermione, what about them? She needs to know that she's not the only one suffering and that she's not the only one affected by this.'

Remus sighed. 'That may be, Sirius, but yelling at her won't help anything. Don't make things worse.'

Sirius then sighed angrily and stormed out of the room. 'Come on,' Remus said to Rachel gently. 'You should rest.'

He took Rachel upstairs and put her to bed. He then left the room without saying anymore. Rachel thought over what Sirius had said to her. He was angry and she wondered if he had a right to be. She knew he and Remus were old friends but still, he didn't have any right to speak to her that way. It also made her wonder if Remus really did blame himself for what happened to her. How would it have been Remus' fault? He wasn't there, was he?

* * *

Later that night when Rachel woke up she got up and went downstairs into the kitchen. She had trouble sleeping and she knew nothing was going to work. She wanted to talk to Remus about the battle and what had happened.

In the kitchen, Remus and Sirius were both sitting at the table. They appeared to have just finished dinner. Remus stood up and hugged her. Rachel's eyes met Sirius' but he looked away quickly.

Remus kissed her temple and looked into her eyes. 'Feeling alright?' he asked with a small smile on his face.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, I just wanted to talk with you.'

'Come and sit at the table.' Rachel walked to the table with Remus and she sat down. Remus sat where he was before, opposite Rachel and he leaned on the table. 'Ok, what's bothering you?'

'Well, I want to know what happened during the battle, were you there? What happened to the others? And what happened while I was gone,' she said quickly.

'Well,' Remus started slowly. 'Do you know anything of what happened?' Remus asked.

'I know Dumbledore died and that Snape was responsible.'

'Who told you that?' Sirius asked suddenly.

'Snape told me himself, when I was at the Malfoy Manor,' she replied.

'W-what?' Remus said quickly. 'You didn't mention the place you were kept.'

'I didn't tell you anything,' Rachel said frowning.

'Why?' Remus asked.

Rachel shrugged. 'I don't know. I forgot,' she said looking between Remus and Sirius.

'How do you forget something like that?' Sirius asked.

'Don't start, Sirius,' Remus warned. 'Most people go through shock after something like that. Things only come back after a while. So, Rachel, is there anything else?'

'Can you answer my question first?' she asked.

Remus chuckled. 'Yes, I'm sorry. Snape didn't lie, he did kill Dumbledore. Bill was also injured. Harry, Hermione, Ron and the others were lucky not to have a scratch on them. We heard you and the others had taken Felix Felicis,' Remus said watching Rachel.

She nodded. 'Yes, but I feel like it didn't work on me. I was attacked and I got injured myself and you just said the others didn't have a scratch on them.'

'They didn't. The healer who treated you did do a blood test on you. You did have Felix Felicis in your system but it didn't work properly.'

'Why?' Rachel asked before Remus could explain.

'The healer said you had a toxin in your body that made the potion ineffective.'

'A toxin? But how?' she asked wide-eyed.

Remus shrugged. His face was heavy lined and he looked troubled. 'I don't know. That's what some of us are trying to figure out. Did you drink anything that you shouldn't have? Or did someone give you something?'

The room went silent as Rachel thought it over. She remember Hermione giving her some water one time in the common room, but she knew Hermione wouldn't give her anything bad, unless she didn't know it was there. After a few moments, something within her mind clicked. Theodore had given her a piece of chocolate last time they were together, he was eating it, but wouldn't he have been poisoning himself too?

'At school after the last Quidditch match I went to the pitch and just sat there, relaxing and Theodore Nott joined me and he had some chocolate on him, he gave me a piece but I didn't think anything of it because he was eating it too,' Rachel said a little worriedly.

'Maybe he only put the toxin in that one piece,' Sirius suggested.

'But why would he do that? He couldn't have known about the battle, he couldn't have known about the luck potion,' Rachel said.

'Maybe, but everyone who took that potions class knew that Harry had won a small bottle of the potion and they took a guess that he hadn't used it yet and it looks like they were right.'

'I told you to be careful of him,' Sirius said looking at Rachel.

'What do you mean?' Remus said frowning.

Rachel decided to answer it herself. 'I've been talking to Theodore a little bit. We weren't friends but we talked sometimes.'

Remus' head hung slightly and he looked at the table. 'Well, I'm sure you won't be doing that anymore.'

Rachel made a small face but said nothing. Remus continued. 'Most of the Order were at the battle and after it Hermione was the first to notice that you weren't there. She said it out loud and all of us looked all over Hogwarts but we couldn't find you. We returned to Grimmauld Place and I felt horrible. There wasn't much we could do. We figured that the Death Eaters had taken you but we didn't know where they were and you didn't have your wand on you, so we couldn't trace you. I do have your wand by the way.'

Remus reached into his robe pocket and brought out Rachel's wand. He placed it on table and rolled it towards Rachel, who reached out and picked it up. She had forgotten about her wand. She had felt as though she still had it. She placed it in her pocket and put her attention back onto Remus.

'Is Bill Ok?' Rachel asked. She realised she hadn't ask much about the others.

Remus and Sirius exchanged glances. Rachel noticed. 'What? What happened?'

'Bill was attacked by Greyback,' Remus said quietly.

A wave of shock ran through Rachel's body. Greyback had almost attacked her and Bill was the one who stopped it from happening. A tear ran down Rachel's cheek. 'Is he going to be alright?' Rachel asked.

Remus half nodded, half shrugged. 'We thought he might be different once he woke up but he appears to be the same person. He will never look the same again; he was scratched and bitten quite badly.'

'But Greyback was in human form,' Rachel said almost desperately.

'Yeah, I know he was, but werewolf bites and scratches don't ever heal,' Remus said quietly.

It made Rachel think of her own injury. 'Does that mean the scratch on my leg from Greyback will never heal too?' she asked.

Remus nodded. His face looked grave. 'Yes, I'm sorry.'

More tears flowed down her face. Neither Remus nor Sirius moved. 'What's wrong?' Sirius asked leaning forwards.

'It's my fault,' she stuttered.

'What do you mean? Bill's injuries aren't your fault,' Remus said promptly.

'But Greyback went for me first and I panicked and I wasn't able to stun him then he scratched my leg and I screamed and then something happened to my wand, I think it rolled away then someone did something to Greyback and he then chased that person and I saw it was Bill. Bill tried to curse and stun him too but it didn't work. If I had done something about it, if I had told someone then it might not have happened,' she said, weeping slightly.

'You can't blame yourself for someone else's actions. You couldn't have known that that would happen; no-one could say that. I know that Bill wouldn't blame you. He told us that Greyback was trying to attack you and he said he made Greyback go after him instead. If he had done nothing then maybe Greyback would have torn you apart.'

It went quiet. Rachel wasn't sure if she could say anything about what happened. 'Has Charlie said anything? Have you heard from him?' she asked quietly.

Remus shook his head. 'I know he has spoken to Bill and his family I'm sure. He wasn't at the battle, he was in Romania. He did know about you and I have sent him a short letter explaining what happened. Hasn't he sent you a letter or something?' Remus asked.

Rachel shook her head. 'No, I haven't heard from him.'

It made her feel sad. What if Charlie blamed her for what happened to Bill? Would he be angry with her? Would he hate her for it?

Remus cleared his throat and Rachel looked at him. 'You have to go back to Hogwarts. I told McGonagall that I would get you back as soon as possible.'

Rachel nodded numbly. She felt a little empty but she didn't know why. Maybe it was because Charlie has said nothing, or that Bill had been injured because of her, or maybe because she had been captured. The things that were done to her were unforgiveable; she knew it would never leave her mind.

'Rachel,' Remus said softly. She looked at him again. 'Can you tell me what happened while you were at the Malfoy Manor?'

Rachel looked away from him and looked at the table. She wasn't sure that she wanted to talk about this. Her eyes lifted and met with Sirius' for a moment before she looked back at Remus. She knew perfectly well what Sirius thought about this.

'Well, when we arrived there I was placed in a cell and a few hours later I was joined by a Muggle girl. I don't know why she was there and I didn't ask. I didn't want to know the real reason. After a while longer Snape came and took me to another room. He test my Occlumency immediately and I failed. He then took me to the Dark Lord and he did the same thing. He told me I was to be the bait for Harry. He then asked me if I was a virgin and he offered me to one of the Death Eaters.'

She paused for a moment as Sirius swore under his breath. 'Who was it?' Remus asked. Rachel looked him over. Remus looked worried. 'It was Snape,' she said unemotionally.

Sirius got up from his chair and it fell over onto the floor. He swore loudly and kicked the chair away violently. 'That fucking bastard!'

'Calm down, Sirius.'

'Remus how can you be so calm about this? You know Snivellus and Lily were friends at school; why else would he touch Rachel in that way, she looks just like Lily.'

'I know that, Sirius, but what's done is done. Snape will pay for what he's done but for now we have to accept this. Besides, we don't know if Snape had feeling for Lily.'

Sirius didn't seem to accept that but he picked his chair up and sat back down, he looked murderous. 'Did anything else happen?' Remus asked.

Rachel was surprised at how calm Remus seemed, was there another reason? 'After that I was put back in my cell, naked, and after a while longer I was taken out of the cell again and up to another room. This time there were only two Death Eaters in the room with me. One of them took me to have a shower and he raped me in there after showering then he took me back into the bedroom where the other one then had a turn while the other one watched.'

'Do you know who they were?' Sirius asked.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah I asked them and one of them told me their names. It surprised me that he told me so freely, unless they were already known Death Eaters. It was Walden Macnair, he was the one who did it to me in the shower then watched in the bedroom and the other one was Augustus Rookwood.'

'We know them,' Remus said quietly. 'What happened after that?'

'I was once again faced with Voldemort and he told me that I was no longer needed as bait, that he had something else in mind and he got Dolohov, Amycus, Rodolphus and Yaxley took me to the village you found me in and they gagged and tied me up. They then murdered most people in the village and I was still naked and they place me within the bodies and they sent up the Dark Mark, then they left.'

'Then hours later we found you,' Sirius said in a low voice.

Rachel nodded. It was quiet again. Rachel yawned after a few moments and she looked at the time. It was almost three in the morning. 'I might go to bed,' she announced.

Both Remus and Sirius stood up. Sirius yawned himself and walked around in a small circle. Rachel frowned a little at him, what was he doing? Remus walked over to her and hugged her, then he kissed her on the cheek.

'Sleep well, Ok?'

Rachel nodded. She tried to leave the room but Remus was still holding her. 'I will have to let the Order know what you've told me.'

'Yeah, I understand,' she said nodding slightly.

'Good. And don't forget to get ready for school next week. You've only got a few days.'

Rachel nodded again and said good-night to Remus and Sirius. She walked upstairs to her room and she sat on the bed. She kind of felt good to tell someone everything that had happened. It was now in the open and soon the Order would know.

She laid down in bed and rolled on her side. She looked at the blank wall and all she could think about was Bill. She still felt responsible for what happened to him. She needed to talk to Bill, she wanted to talk to him and make sure he wasn't angry with her. She also wondered how Harry and Hermione were. She hasn't spoken to them either.

Rachel eventually fell into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

When Rachel arrived back at Hogwarts she went straight up to Gryffindor Tower. She couldn't help but notice how many people stared at her as she walked through the corridors. When she walked into the common room, everyone looked up and stared at her. She felt embarrassed for some reason. She walked to the stairs and walked up to her dormitory. It was full and Hermione looked up and smiled at her when she entered. The other three girls just stared at her.

Hermione got off the bed and hugged Rachel tightly. When she moved Rachel saw her trunk sitting at the end of her bed. 'Are you feeling alright?' Hermione asked still smiling.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, I'm alright.'

The other three girls left the dormitory together. 'What's going on? Why is everyone staring at me?'

Suddenly, Hermione looked uncomfortable. She shifted where she was standing. 'Well, most people know that you were kidnapped during the battle and there have been rumours flying around about what happened while you were with them.'

Rachel sighed angrily. Could this get any worse? 'How do people know?'

Hermione shrugged. 'We're guessing that it came from the Slytherin's. They're the ones that would probably know.'

'What kind of rumours have there been?' Rachel asked stiffly.

She sat down on her bed and Hermione sat on hers, facing Rachel. 'Well,' she started slowly, 'there's one going around that you were raped, one that you were tortured, one that you had actually joined them and were a Death Eater yourself, and there are others but most are kind of ridiculous.'

'Do you know about... what happened?' Rachel asked slowly.

Hermione nodded. 'Yeah, Harry was told and he told me, Ron and Ginny.'

'Why would he tell Ginny?'

'I guess because they're dating,' Hermione said honestly.

'But he knows she hates me, what if she goes telling people? How do you know she didn't start the rumours?'

Hermione shrugged. 'I don't believe Ginny would do anything that cruel. I know she doesn't like you but I don't think she'd go that far.'

Rachel looked away, she felt annoyed but she said nothing. 'Has Harry or anyone said anything?' Rachel asked while getting ready for bed. All she wanted to do was go to sleep and see if this would go away by morning.

Hermione was still sitting on her bed. She shook her head. 'No, Harry hasn't said anything to me. He's been unusually quiet since we came back.'

Rachel indicated that she heard her but she didn't say anything. She got into bed and laid on her back. She sighed and Hermione eventually moved and got ready for bed herself. Rachel closed the curtains around her bed and she cried herself softly to sleep.

* * *

In the morning as Rachel walked to her first class she couldn't help but notice that people were still staring at her. She entered her first class with Hermione and as soon as they walked in, the Slytherin's on the other side of the room began jeering and calling out all the names under the sun. Hermione made a face at them and she grabbed Rachel's sleeve and took her to back seat on the Gryffindor's side.

When McGonagall entered the room, she looked to the Slytherin's. Rachel watched. She thought that McGonagall's stern and severe look could have frozen hell over. 'That is enough,' she said firmly. 'I will not tolerate that in my classroom. Whoever says another word like that I will not hesitate to expel. That behaviour is completely inappropriate and no-one, I mean no-one, deserves to be treated in that manner. You wouldn't like it if someone did it back to you. Show some respect.'

The room went deathly silent, it felt like no-one in the room even dared to breathe. The tension in the room was tight and almost strained; you could have cut it with a knife. Rachel had never seen McGonagall like this and apparently no-one else had either. It surprised Rachel that McGonagall was still teaching now that she was headmistress. She thought she would find someone else to teach, unless she couldn't find anyone because of the brewing war.

Rachel knew one was coming and it would arrive soon. The Order had found the Malfoy Manor and had been stalking around outside the front. Rachel was surprised it wasn't shielded or guarded better. The Order seemed to have no trouble seeing it but Rachel thought it could have been a front, just a facade and what they were seeing wasn't actually real.

She tried not to think about it too much but it wasn't always that easy. She knew she now had Hermione around and it did make going around Hogwarts easier but for some reason she still felt alone. She still got stared at; it made her wonder how Harry put up with it. Maybe he was used to it by now. She also knew that she had the Order and Remus but there was still something wrong.

She still hadn't heard from Charlie and now all she got from the Weasley's was a cold stare all the time. They blame her for what happened to Bill. She didn't blame them, she still even blamed herself. If she had stun or curse Greyback it wouldn't have happened. Charlie was most likely angry with her and blamed her as well. But didn't he know what had happened to her? What about what she had gone through? Didn't it mean anything to him?

Rachel sighed and shook herself out of her own thoughts. She wondered when the final confrontation would take place. It had to be soon. The Dark Lord wasn't going to wait much longer. She bent her head and finished up her homework. She felt a little silly doing homework. It didn't matter too much when there was a chance that the school might not be here much longer, or that she might not be here too much longer either.

She kept on writing but still couldn't help but wonder what was coming and if things would get better soon.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

When Rachel walked into the library she looked around. Her face and confidence fell when she saw Theodore sitting at the back. She tried to hide within the shelves but he had looked up and Rachel was sure he had seen her. It didn't take long for Theodore to join her between the shelves.

'Well, well, well, look who we have here,' Theodore said coolly.

'What do you want?' Rachel asked not looking at him. She kept her back to him. She didn't want to see his smirking face.

'Just wanted to know how you're doing,' he said evenly.

'I find that hard to believe,' Rachel said back. Her jaw clenched tightly. There were many things she wanted to say at this moment but she knew it wouldn't be the right place.

'Why would you care?' she asked.

'I heard what happened to you.'

'They're just rumours,' she said lightly.

'No, I don't think they are. My father went on about how Snape and some of the others had their way with you. I never thought I would see the day,' he said smirking heavily.

A thick book fell to the floor heavily. Rachel turned on the spot and stared at the boy standing opposite her. He was still smirking. He looked very pleased with himself. Rachel wasn't sure what to do. Part of her wanted to break down and cry and another part of her wanted to scream. She decided that something similar to the latter would be better.

She moved swiftly and pushed Theodore over with her weight and effort. He fell and Rachel planted herself on top of him. She whipped her wand out and poked it into his neck roughly. She snarled at him, her white teeth gleaming between her pink lips. She slapped his cheek. Theodore made no sound but Rachel could tell it had hurt him, he had winced. She hoped it did hurt.

'You listen to me,' she said thickly. 'I don't care what you've heard and I don't care what you think you know, you keep your mouth shut. If I hear one peep from you, I swear you'll be sorry,' she spat.

'Miss Potter!'

She didn't turn her head. All she could do was look down on Theodore's leering face. His eyes moved off her face and turned to the figure standing before them. 'Miss Potter, remove yourself from Mr. Nott now!'

After another few moments, Rachel turned her head to the side and looked at the person who had spoken. It was Snape. Rachel got off Theodore and moved back against the shelves. Her breathing became irregular and her eyes became wide. What was Snape becoming here? She looked around him and to her sides in fear. What was she going to do?

Theodore got up off the floor and brushed himself off. He looked at Rachel again before walking past Snape and leaving the library. Snape kept his black eyes fastened on Rachel, who in turned couldn't stop looking at him. 'Why are you here?' Rachel asked exhaling sharply.

'I do not know what you mean. I am a teacher here. Dumbledore is gone and I have taken over as Headmaster,' he said in a low voice.

'B-but... b-but,' Rachel started, stuttering.

'But what?' Snape asked cocking an eyebrow.

'What's just happened then?'

'I believe you are confused?' Snape suggested.

'Yes, sir, just a little,' she said quietly.

Rachel remained against the bookshelf. She was still in shock from seeing Snape. He made no attempt to move closer to her but he brought his hands together. The librarian, Madam Pince, came over to see what all the noise was but as soon as she saw Snape she flinched and turned back and walked away from them quickly.

'Then let me inform you of what has happened tonight. A few days ago the Dark Lord told me to come back to Hogwarts and take over the head position. I have done as I was told. Your brother however has fled Hogwarts, how I do not know, where I do not know but I'm sure he will return, all of his friends are here and so are you.'

'And what do you plan on doing with me?' Rachel asked her voice a little stronger and less shaky.

'I haven't decided but I cannot have you beating up my students.' Snape paused and regarded Rachel for a moment. 'I think it would be best for you to join me in my private rooms.'

It was one thing she didn't want to hear. She paused but then ran towards the door but she got nowhere. Snape grabbed her and took her wand before she could use it. Another two people came into the room and Rachel recognised one of them, it was the one Voldemort called Amycus. The person was a woman. She looked as though she could have been his sister. She looked towards Rachel and leered, her.

'Alecto, take Miss. Potter, to my office and if you do anything to her I will not be happy. Amycus, I want you to go to the Gryffindor Tower and make sure they keep quiet and to themselves and I do not want to hear of anymore beatings or punishments for today. Is that understood?' he asked looking at both them sternly.

Both of them nodded and Amycus gave her a slight wink before he left the library. When his footsteps could no longer be heard Snape turned to Alecto and nodded once. She wheezed and took Rachel's arm roughly and pulled her out of the room. Rachel screamed but Snape did not move. He didn't even blink.

* * *

Hours later, Rachel was still in Snape's office with Alecto. Snape still hadn't come to get her. She was sitting in the corner of the room. Alecto was sitting on Snape's desk. She hardly took her eyes off Rachel. It was like having a hawk watching its prey, waiting for the right moment to strike. When the door to the office opened they both looked over. It was Snape.

'You may leave,' Snape said to Alecto.

She got off the desk and walked past Snape and out the door without a word. Snape walked over to Rachel and stopped and few feet from her. He looked down at her for a few minutes before saying anything. 'Get up,' he said.

Rachel got up off the floor and rubbed her arms. She was cold and tired and it had been hours since she had eaten anything. 'Follow me,' Snape said. He turned around and started walking towards another door. Rachel followed and the door opened on its own, as though someone had opened it, expecting them but there was no-one else around.

The new room was dark; there were no windows, and no light coming from anywhere. Snape walked into the room and Rachel hesitantly followed. She was unsure what this room was. She thought it could have been Snape's private rooms but it seemed too small.

'Lumos,' Snape whispered to the darkness. His lit wand and the new space was became lightened. It wasn't actually a room, it was a corridor. It seemed to be at least thirty metres long. Rachel could see a door on the other side. It looked similar to one they had just walked through. She followed Snape up the corridor and they both walked through the other door.

The next room was dark also. When Snape entered his wand lit that up as well. The walls were all white in colour and again there were no windows. Snape went to one side of the room and lit up a fire. Rachel stopped in the room. This must be his private rooms. There was a bed in the middle and a large, black wardrobe in one corner. There was a small rug in front of the fire, along with an armchair.

Snape took out his wand and conjured another armchair which looked the same as the other one. 'Sit down,' he said softly.

'Why am I here?' Rachel asked. She didn't move. She wanted answers about what was going on. Snape seemed to be saying one thing and doing another. She wanted to know what was going to happen and what could be done about it.

'Sit and I shall inform you.'

Rachel made a small face which Snape did not see and she sat down. Snape joined her and sat in the other armchair. He took out his wand and waved it, making the two chairs turn and face each other. Rachel quickly grabbed the sides and gasped slightly. A small table then appeared between them and on top of it appeared a silver tray with two small glasses and a bottle of clear liquid. If Rachel was correct then the stuff in the bottle was Firewhiskey.

Snape poured them each a glass with this wand and he took a small sip before setting it down again and looking at Rachel closely. 'Drink some; it may calm you down a little.'

Rachel wasn't sure if she should believe him but she did believe that he wouldn't kill her. She picked up the glass and took a very small sip. She moved it quickly and coughed. It was quite strong. She had never tasted Firewhiskey before. She knew how Remus felt about it. She then placed the glass back down and leaned back against the armchair. It was quite comfortable. She kept her eyes on Snape though and waited for him to speak.

'Here we can talk without being interrupted by anyone. Also, this conversation must stay private.'

Rachel went to say something but Snape cut across her. 'Do not interrupt and ask questions. I will tell you everything but you must be patient.'

Rachel nodded and took another sip of her drink. She completely relaxed against the back of the chair and sighed. She wasn't sure what Snape was going to tell her but she was sure if was about why he was here now.

'Now, as I told you before your brother has fled Hogwarts, I do not know where he is and nor does anyone else. I'm sure he will return. He is destined to face the Dark Lord again and it will happen here. The Dark Lord will arrive here in a few days and so will the rest of the Death Eaters. The Order has been informed of this by an Imperioused source. And before you ask, I am still on your side. I killed Dumbledore because I had to. He asked me to do it. He wanted to die with dignity and without the humiliation of having someone else do it for him.'

'But why would he ask you to kill him?' Rachel blurted out.

'Dumbledore already knew he was dying. He had touched something that was cursed and I was only able to stop it for so long. He knew his time was soon up and he devised a plan to make it happen.'

Snape paused. He had ignored the fact that she had interrupted. 'I am sorry for what I did to you at the Malfoy Manor. I am also sorry for not being able to stop the others touching you.' Snape then stood up and walked over to the wardrobe. He took out a pensieve and placed it on the table, removing the tray and drinks. Snape then sat back down and pulled out two vials from his robes.

He opened one and with his wand his took out a single memory and he stood up again. He approached Rachel placed it to her head. It came back to her immediately. Snape telling her that he was a Death Eater and the awkward moment afterwards. She looked up at Snape, not able to look away. Snape then opened the other vial and poured the contents into the pensieve.

'Look inside. Go in and look for yourself.'

Rachel hesitated for a moment before diving into the pensieve. She couldn't imagine what Snape would show her. When she landed she looked around. She was in a playground. Where was she? The sky was blue and the sun was shining brightly. She heard laughter and she turned around. There were two girls playing on the swings.

They were both pale but one had blonde hair and the other had red. She heard a rustling sound and she turned around. There was a young boy standing behind her. It looked like Snape, well, a young Snape. He was watching both of the girls on the swings intensely. Rachel turned back and watched as one of the girls jumped off high into the air. Rachel almost shouted out herself but the girl landed safely on her feet as though she were light as a feather. She must have been a witch.

When Rachel moved closer to the two girls she gasped slightly. The red-head was her mother. It certainly looked like her. The hair, the skin and most definitely the eyes. They were almond shaped and a bright, vivid green. She was beautiful now. Rachel then looked the other girl. That must be her aunt. Her mother's sister. She was blonde and fair, with dull blue eyes.

'Mum said you're not allowed to do that,' the blonde one called.

'Don't worry, so much, Tuney. See, I'm not hurt,' Lily called back.

She frowned and watched as her sister found a flower on the ground. She picked it up and the flower began to move. 'Stop doing that,' the young Petunia called.

'I'm not hurting the flower. I wish I knew what I was actually doing though,' Lily said frowning at the flower, but her face soon turned into a bright, wide smile as the flower began to lift itself into the air. Lily yelped with glee but Petunia looked like she was sulking slightly. 'Don't make me tell mum,' she called.

'Mum doesn't mind, you know she-'

She stopped talking as another noise was heard. Snape came out from behind a large bush and approached the two girls. 'You're a witch,' he said looking at Lily.

Lily's face turned a little pink. 'That's not a very nice thing to say.'

'But it's true. My mum's a witch and I'm a wizard.'

'You're that Snape boy, who lives near the river,' Petunia called. She had folded her arms across her chest.

'So what if I am, you're just a Muggle,' Snape said back.

Petunia looked offended though she didn't understand. 'I'm going to tell mum, come on, Lily, we're going home.'

Lily turned around and looked at her sister for a moment before deciding. 'No, I want to know more.'

Her face lit up with an excited interested but Petunia turned on her heel and walked back home by herself. Lily moved a little closer to Snape. Rachel also moved closer but she didn't hear what was said. She watched her mother look angry and turn around, yelling after her sister. Rachel looked at Snape, his face was pink and he look embarrassed. It didn't seem like it went like he had wanted.

The scene then changed. They were on platform nine and three quarters. Rachel looked around. She could see her mother and aunt with her grandparents. She had never seen them before. They were both looking up and down the train station excitedly, while their two children talked a little bit away from them. They appeared to be arguing.

Rachel moved closer to hear them. 'I do wish you could come with us but Dumbledore said you couldn't because you're a Muggle.'

'Why would I want to go to that school anyway, it's only for freaks like you and that Snape boy. I prefer to be normal.'

Petunia stalked off and Lily followed her. Rachel turned around and looked down the station. The young Snape was there with a woman who appeared to be his mother. She was tall, with black hair and very pallid skin. Snape resembled his mother greatly, but Rachel knew that he looked a lot like his father too. It confused Rachel a little. Snape was watching Lily and Petunia closely.

Then the scene changed again and they were now on the Hogwarts Express. Rachel didn't have to search far before she found Snape and her mother. Rachel entered the compartment and watched them. Lily was looking out the window. Her eyes looked red, as though she had been crying. Snape was looking at her intently. He moved a little closer to her. Lily didn't notice anything.

'Aren't you excited? We're going to Hogwarts, we're really going,' Snape said. There was a small twinkle in his eye. 'You better be in Slytherin.'

'Slytherin?'

There were two other people in the compartment with Snape and Lily, both of whom had taken no interested in them until the name Slytherin was mentioned. With a jolt of surprise she smiled. One of the other boys in the compartment had black, messy hair and hazel eyes. It was her father and she looked to the other boy, it looked like Sirius, just younger and very handsome.

'Who'd want to be in Slytherin?' James asked. 'I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?' he asked the boy sitting opposite him.

The young Sirius shrugged. 'All of my family were in Slytherin,' he said.

'And I thought you seemed alright,' James said smiling.

Sirius grinned broadly. They then both turned their attention back to Snape and Lily. 'And where would you rather go?' Lily asked James.

'Gryffindor, where the brave at heart dwell, same house as my dad,' he announced happily.

'If you rather be brawny than brainy, that's your problem,' Snape said under his breath.

'Well, where the hell would you go, since you're neither,' James said.

Both James and Sirius roared with laughter. Rachel turned and looked at Lily. She was seething, she looked livid. 'Come on, Severus, let's go find another compartment to sit in.'

They both stood up but both kept on laughing. They tried to trip Snape on the way out. 'Don't trip now, Snivellus,' Sirius called out. They both laughed even harder.

The scene changed once more and Rachel looked around. She was at Hogwarts. She walked over to where her mother and Snape were. They appeared to be arguing. Rachel listened only to a little bit of it before the scene dissolved into another one. She was standing outside Gryffindor Tower where Snape and her mother were arguing again.

Their relationship had ended. She watched Lily turn quickly and stormed back through the portrait hole after whispering the password. Snape watched after her, not moving himself from the spot. He looked dejected, as though all the air from his body had escaped. He looked like he wanted to cry but he didn't.

The scene quickly disappeared and Rachel was taken back to the face the present day Snape. He was watching her closely. She looked back at him and she didn't know what to say or even think. If she was correct then Snape had feelings for her.

'You loved her,' Rachel whispered.

Snape stood up from his chair and he walked over to the fire. Rachel's eyes watched him and she saw him nodded his head slowly. 'I was in love with your mother. From the moment I saw her, I wanted her. I also knew that James Potter loved her too. I never thought she would chose him, I'm sure she would have chosen me if not for my mistake.'

'Mistake?' Rachel questioned.

'Yes, one afternoon your father and Sirius Black decided they were bored and used a few spells including one of my own. Your mother came to help and I called her a mudblood out of my humiliation and anger. I tried to apologise to her but she wouldn't hear of it.'

'Your own spells?' Rachel asked frowning.

'I'm the Half-Blood Prince. Your brother has my old book, he's been using it this year,' Snape said. Rachel knew about the book. She wasn't sure it was a good idea but she never tried to interrupt much.

Rachel turned back around and looked at the pensieve which was still in front of her. She hadn't expected to see those things. Her mother and Snape were best friends and he was in love with her until he made one mistake. She wondered why her mother did not forgive Snape. Did she believe he would hurt her again, or did she find out about his feelings and knew that she could not return them?

'Was it the reason you touched me and took my virginity?' Rachel asked.

'Partly,' Snape answered. 'I also knew that the Dark Lord would not let you go without someone taking you. He wanted this to happen to you. He first planned on using you to get to your brother. He then realised he didn't need you, but before letting you go he wanted to be hurt and humiliated. I didn't want someone else to take you first. I am sorry I put you through that. I think you should be lucky that Greyback wasn't allowed near you.'

Rachel wasn't sure if that was something to be happy about or not. If Snape was telling her the truth about everything then he had saved her. Her first time was still bad but it wasn't with someone she didn't know, it was someone she knew well, but someone she thought had betrayed her. He helped her then and he's helping her now, from being attacked.

'What's happened to my brother?' Rachel asked.

Snape walked away from the fire and walked back to the other armchair. He sat down heavily and sigh. She had never seen Snape like this before. He was physically distressed and he looked tired. Rachel felt like hugging him but she knew it would be inappropriate.

'Your brother has fled, like I told you. I'm sure he's with the Order, he cannot be far away. He will return here soon, I'm sure, as I know he will hear about the Dark Lord coming here. Also, I have your wand.'

Snape held it out and Rachel took it. 'Thank you,' she said inaudibly.

He didn't appear to hear her. 'You will sleep here. You will be safe. No-one can entered here without me with them.'

'Where will you be?' Rachel asked suddenly alarmed.

'Around,' he replied.

Snape stood up from his chair again and he left the room silently. Rachel stood up but she wasn't sure where to go. For some reason she trusted Snape at this moment. He was being different with her but he was helping her. Rachel moved over to the bed and she touched it. Nothing happened. She wasn't sure what she was expecting to happen though. She sat down on the bed. It was soft and comfortable.

She wondered how long it would take for the Dark Lord and the rest of his followers to get here. She also wondered when her brother would be returning. Rachel couldn't stop thinking about Remus, Hermione and Charlie. She hoped they were Ok. She knew Remus might be panicking right now.

Rachel sighed loudly and laid down on the bed. She eventually fell asleep with uneasy feeling of what was coming.

* * *

A few days later, Rachel woke up with a start. She had gone to bed early because she was tired from doing... nothing. She looked her watch. It was just after ten at night. She got up from the bed and got changed quickly and grabbing her wand from the bedside table she exited the room quietly.

She walked through the corridors and past the potions classroom. The dungeons appeared to be empty. She kept walking and found her way up the stairs. She entered the Great Hall. All members of the Order of the Phoenix were there. Her eyes found Remus and he turned to face her.

She looked around the rest of the room, but she couldn't see Snape anywhere. Remus began to walk towards her but stopped as a low rumbling noise was felt all around the castle. Rachel steadied herself. What could that have been? She was sure the Dark Lord was now here and that's why Snape wasn't around.

Rachel just hoped Snape told her the truth, that he really was on there side.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

Rachel walked over to Remus once the rumbling stopped and they both hugged. She went to move away but Remus kept a hold of her. He didn't want to let her go. He stroked her hair for a long moment before releasing her. Rachel smiled up at him. 'I'm Ok,' she said looking into his face.

He nodded. 'Yeah, I can see that. Where were you? Hermione was looking for you but she couldn't find you.'

'It's a long story. I'll explain everything when this is over.'

'You're not staying for this,' Remus said firmly.

'Yes I am, Remus. If Harry's going to fight then I am too,' she said back. Remus wanted to argue. 'Remus, I am of age, and I will fight alongside you and the Order.'

'What if something happens?' Remus asked. The worry in his voice was noticeable. Rachel didn't want him to worry about anything. She knew that people died in battle but this time she felt stronger, more capable. She wasn't going to run from this fight.

While in Snape's rooms she found many books about the Dark Arts and spells. She had practiced some and even ones that she knew well. She wanted to be prepared for this. The last battle had made her feel like a coward. She ran away after being attacked by Greyback and losing her wand. Theodore had made sure that one of them would fail. He fooled her well.

'What if you die?' Rachel asked back.

She wanted Remus to stop seeing her as a child and see her for the adult that she has become. She looked over at the Weasley's; none of them were looking in her direction. She looked away, back at Remus. 'Is Sirius here?' she asked.

Remus nodded. 'Yeah, he's with Harry, I don't know what they're talking about but I think Sirius is afraid that one of them won't survive.'

Rachel thought she could understand that, she had the same feeling with Remus. She looked around the Great Hall some more. There were many students here, though none of them were from Slytherin. It didn't surprise her at all, though it made her feel a little angry that they would rather save themselves and their house pride rather than their school. They didn't seem to think about anyone but themselves.

'Do you know what's happening?' Rachel asked.

She couldn't deny that she was scared for herself and everyone she loved right now. She wondered if Charlie was coming back for this battle or if he was staying in Romania. She couldn't see him anywhere at the moment. She wondered when the Dark Lord would strike and she could only speculate on how many Death Eaters were present here.

There was a loud rumbling noise that appeared to be coming from outside. Rachel instinctively grabbed Remus' sleeve. He looked at her and smiled faintly. Rachel couldn't take her eyes off the double doors to the Great Hall. There was something outside. It sounded big and large. It made her think that Voldemort had more support other than the Death Eaters. She couldn't think of that other creatures would help the Dark Lord, other than werewolves. She had thought of vampires but Rachel didn't think he would use them as they weren't considered wizards. Maybe the noises were coming from giants. That thought scared her.

She let go of Remus and he sighed heavily. He seemed worried too. 'No, I'm not sure what's happening,' Remus said. 'I'm sure Voldemort is out there doing something. We just have to get the students out of here first.'

Rachel nodded. 'Is Tonks here?'

Remus shook his head. 'No, she's at home,' he said quietly.

'Why? She's an Auror; I thought she'd be here, fighting.'

'She can't,' Remus said simply.

'But why?' Rachel asked.

'She's pregnant,' Remus said inaudibly.

'What?!' Rachel squealed.

The Great Hall went silent and most people in the room turned and looked at Remus and Rachel, as her squeal echoed the room. Rachel flushed slightly but kept her attention on Remus. 'Why didn't you tell me before?'

'She's still got another six months to go,' Remus said bluntly.

Rachel was starting to suspect that there was more behind it. She thought Remus would be happy to have a family with Tonks. She knew they had been dating, they weren't married yet but they had been together for a little while. Remus hadn't told her when he got with Tonks; she had to hear it through Hermione. She was happy for Remus, though he didn't seem very happy right now.

'What's the problem?'

'What do you mean "what's the problem"?' Remus asked. His voice was low, and a little raspy. 'I'm a werewolf and my kind don't usually breed. What if the child turns out to be a werewolf? What have I done to it?'

Rachel was surprised by the sudden outburst. 'Then,' she started slowly, 'I would like to think that you would be there for the child.'

Remus' jaw seemed to tighten. He no longer wanted to discuss it. He walked away from Rachel and she decided to let it go. He didn't need this right now, she knew that. They were faced with bigger problems right now. They had to get through this night alive.

A few people gasped and Rachel almost jumped out of her skin when the doors to the Great Hall opened. It was only Harry and Sirius. It surprised her that Harry walked straight to her. He seemed determined about something. His face looked like it had been set in stone. He hugged her closely. His hands resting on the middle of her back. Rachel hugged him back.

'Are you alright?' Rachel asked when Harry let her go.

He nodded coyly. 'Yeah, I just… wanted you to know that… I care about you and I want you to take care of yourself if you're staying for this battle.'

Was something wrong with her? Rachel felt as though she had been put into an alternate reality or something. This didn't seem like the Harry she knew, or the Harry she thought she knew. She looked at him and smiled slightly. She wasn't sure what to say to that but she knew Harry was feeling a little embarrassed.

'I feel the same about you,' she said quietly. 'Maybe after this, we could spend some time together,' she suggested.

Harry nodded. 'Yeah, that would be good,' he said smiling.

Rachel couldn't help it. She moved forwards and kissed Harry on the cheek before hugging him again. She wanted him to know everything she had ever thought about them but she could never find the words and she was almost certain that he wouldn't have listened, but now it was different. They had both grown up and things were changing. Rachel hoped it was for the better.

She released Harry and they both chuckled faintly. It was still weird to be acting like brother and sister though. It was still foreign to both of them. They both had a lot to learn about each other and if things went right tonight then they would have plenty of time after.

Everyone in the room went quiet as McGonagall moved up to the front of the Great Hall and stood on the slight platform. She looked worried and concerned herself. All her features were constricted and taut. She looked everyone over before starting. 'Kingsley will take over, but all the students who are not staying to fight have now gone through the room of requirement and will be safe where they are. I wish everyone luck.'

Her last sentence was uttered with her eyes on Harry. Rachel knew McGonagall cared about Harry very much, like she did, she shared the feeling. She knew, along with everyone else, that Harry had to face the Dark Lord alone and that no-one would be able to do it. It scared Rachel. She had learnt how powerful Voldemort used to be and how powerful he has become again.

McGonagall stepped down and Kingsley took her place. 'We're going to different places, we have to spread out. I want the teachers to take their places around the school. I want Moody and a couple of others to go to the Astronomy Tower. Remus, Arthur and I will go out onto the grounds. The rest of you must spread out in the school but make sure you can still see someone near you that could help you if needed.'

Many of the people in the room nodded and Rachel, along with others, took out their wands. Rachel took a deep breath. She was ready for this. It was going to be different than last time; she was more prepared for this.

When everyone left the Great Hall to get ready, Rachel wondered where she should go. She waited until most people had already left before she made up her mind. She watched Harry leave and disappear. She then made her way out of the Great Hall and walked towards the Hogwarts grounds. She wanted to be near Remus, but she was sure he wouldn't approve.

She looked around slowly. It was dark and the main light was coming from the moon and stars above. It was chilly and the trees were still. She walked over near the lake. There were only two other people there, Hestia Jones and Luna Lovegood. They both smiled at her politely as she walked near and joined them.

Everyone had their attention turned onto the Forbidden Forest. It must be where Voldemort was hiding for now. She heard Remus call out, 'Another five minutes.'

Hearing that made Rachel more nervous. The trees in the forest were shaking, there seemed to be a lot of commotion. She was now sure there were giants in there. When Remus called out that there was another minute to go, she held her wand at the ready. She was expecting many Death Eaters to come running out of the trees when the time was up. Rachel was sure on one thing, if Voldemort wanted Harry and his friends dead then he would have to fight for it.

When their time was up spells of all kinds came whizzing through the trees at a fast speed. Many people had to move quickly to avoid getting hit. There were four Death Eaters coming towards her, Luna and Hestia and they all ran to meet them.

'Stupefy,' Luna yelled. Her spell hit one of the Death Eaters coming towards them. He fell to the ground, hard and, he didn't get up.

They all then rushed towards the other three. Two of them were wearing masks but one of them wasn't and Rachel recognised him as Rookwood. She never wanted to see his face again. He immediately saw her as well and he leered at her. 'Never thought I'd see you again, my pretty,' he said to Rachel.

She shivered slightly and they began to duel each other. Rookwood stopped after a few moments. 'I thought you be too scared to come into this fight, little one, especially after what Fenrir did to you in the last one.'

'I'm not scared of you,' Rachel stated firmly.

'Oh really,' he taunted. 'I'm sure the others would love to play with you again.'

'I don't think so,' Rachel said through her teeth. 'Expelliarmus,' she yelled.

Rookwood blocked the spell easily and he laughed. 'You're gonna have to better than that.'

Before he could do anything or say anything, Rachel waved her wand quickly. 'Densaugeo,' she shouted quickly.

She couldn't help but smile slightly as Rookwood stumbled back in surprise and drop his wand. He staggered backwards as he felt his teeth, which were growing at a rapid rate. He went to pick up his wand but Rachel got to him first. 'Stupefy,' she said.

She felt almost angry; she wanted revenge against him for what he did to her. He deserved to pay for it. She watched as the red spell hit Rookwood in the chest and his body go rigid. He fell to the ground and Rachel walked over to him and looked down on him. She bent down a little and picked up his wand. She placed it in her robes and looked back at him. She was about to turn away but she stopped and kicked Rookwood in the side, that made her feel even better.

She turned to look at what happened to the others. Luna had just finished stunning the Death Eater who had chased her and they both ran towards Hestia who seemed to be struggling with the Death Eater she was duelling. He seemed to be getting the upper hand. Rachel wondered how they had drifted so far apart.

She and Luna ran towards Hestia but they weren't quick enough. They both shouted in despair as the killing curse was shouted, and the green flame engulfed her quickly and she fell to the ground, her eyes wide in shock.

Rachel lifted her wand quickly. 'Impedimenta,' she yelled.

The Death Eater cried out and fell to the ground. She was about to use another curse but Luna beat her to it. 'Incarcerous.'

A long, thick rope came out of nowhere and wrapped itself around the Death Eater, keeping him where he was. Luna smiled and they both approached him. Luna stayed there and Rachel went almost straight to Hestia. She was, of course, dead. Rachel exhaled sharply. They already lost someone, she wondered if anyone else had fallen already.

Rachel turned around and she saw Luna pick up the Death Eaters wand and place it in her pocket. She then looked around to see if who else was on the grounds. She saw Remus fighting with a masked Death Eater and all the others seemed busy with at least one Death Eater. She wondered if Voldemort was fighting or if he was still in the forest.

She ran towards the castle, she had lost sight of Luna. She entered the Entrance hall, it was empty. She ran up the steps and ran towards the room of requirement, there seemed to be a lot of noise coming from there. She reached the area and she immediately saw Tonks, she felt a little taken aback, what was she doing here?

She turned her head slightly and Ginny, Cho and Colin appeared. She almost shouted as a Death Eater came around the corner to where they were and fired a spell before any of them could. Rachel stuck out her wand.

'Protego,' she shouted.

It covered herself and Tonks, to whom the spell had been directed at. Tonks breathed deeply and lifted her own wand. 'Langlock,' she said almost casually. The Death Eater couldn't speak but Rachel knew that it wouldn't stop him from getting a spell or curse out. He pointed his wand at Ginny, who hadn't reacted yet.

Rachel beat the Death Eater to it. Did he think he'd win against five people?

'Stupefy,' she said.

The Death Eater fell to the ground with a small crunching sound. Ginny seemed flustered and she looked towards Rachel, looking a little sheepish. 'Thanks,' she muttered quietly.

Rachel gave her a small smile before turning her attention. 'Remus told me, congratulations. I thought you weren't supposed to be here.'

Tonks smiled and dismissed it. 'I know, but this is what I do for a living, I can't just sit back while the others go for it.'

Rachel sot of agreed with Tonks but she wondered how Remus was going to take it. He already seemed on edge as it was; this might just make it worse. They all eventually went different ways. They were all unprepared for a sudden attack. At least seven Death Eaters jumped out and corner them together. Spells were fired and Rachel threw a shield charm around herself.

She watched as Cho was thrown against a wall and landed on the marble floor and Colin was shoved on the ground by a large Death Eater and kicked a few times. Rachel shouted out. She felt helpless, Colin shouldn't even be here. She let the shield charm go and she ran towards the large Death Eater who continued to kick Colin.

She bawled him over and they fell to the ground together, Rachel landing on top. She groaned slightly and got back up quickly. She saw his wand lying there and she kicked it away without thinking. She stunned him before running away. Her eyes moved over to where Cho lay and she ran to her. Cho was slightly injured but otherwise alright.

Rachel helped her up and Cho thanked her and went looking for her wand, which she found a few feet from her. Rachel looked around, the other Death Eaters had been taken care of and Tonks was now checking Colin. Rachel, Ginny and Cho all walked over. Tonks looked up, she appeared grave and she shook her head slowly.

'He's dead,' she whispered.

Cho and Ginny couldn't bear to hear that. They both stifled a cry and turned away. Rachel just looked down at Colin's now dead body. He had been alive before. She went to help him. She felt shocked. Tonks stood up and walked to Rachel. 'You did what you could.'

It didn't help. Rachel walked away and left the corridor. She didn't want to be there right now. She knew Harry was going to be crushed. He did think of Colin as annoying but he was still something special. She didn't want to think about it anymore. It made her think about Remus and if he was OK.

A tear slid down her cheek and she wiped it away. She couldn't think about it anymore. There was still things to do and people to get rid of. She held her wand at the ready and she walked back down the stairs. She yelped as a spell came out of nowhere and hit the wall next to her head. She stopped and looked down. In the Entrance Hall was a Death Eater. Rachel was now on the second floor.

Her eyes darted to the door next to her. 'Going to run?' the Death Eater taunted. His voice sounded familiar. Did she know him? He was wearing a mask so she couldn't tell. But she was going to do as he just said. She opened the door quickly, avoiding another spell, and ran through the door without closing it behind her.

She ran down the corridor and hid behind a stone pillar. She was holding her wand tightly and she tried to stop breathing heavily. She was scared. This time she was by herself. There was no-one to help her if she got into trouble. The door to this floor opened wider, creaking as it went. His footsteps then echoed through the quiet corridor.

'Where are you little one? You can't hide forever? You're all alone in here, why don't you come out and play?'

She did know that voice. It was from the guy she saw at the Malfoy Manor. He was the one with grey hair and pale skin. He took her out of her cell and took her to the Dark Lord for the last time. She didn't know if he was dangerous or not. She knew some Death Eaters were worse and crueller than others. She didn't know his name either, though it wouldn't help her right now.

She could hear him walking closer towards her. She wasn't sure what spell to use, but then she smiled slightly, though she immediately thought it inappropriate. When he just walked past her, she flicked her wand and it tripped the Death Eater over. He landed on his back and he groaned. Rachel grimaced slightly, she probably would have too.

She came out from the pillar and stunned the Death Eater quickly. He fell to the ground and Rachel just watched it happen. She was about to leave the corridor when a voice echoed throughout the school. It made her jump and it made her skin crawl. The voice was cold, high and cruel.

'_Harry Potter, you have let your friends and allies die for you rather than facing me yourself. I will give you one hour to collect your dead and treat your injured. At the end of that time, if you have not faced me, I shall come and find you. I shall wait for you in the Forbidden Forest. Do not keep me waiting much longer.'_

The voice died down and Rachel stood still, remaining in the same spot. She looked towards the stunned Death Eater. She thought about reviving him but then decided not to. What if the battle started again and he killed someone else? She walked to the door and she listened. She heard a few footsteps walk past and she waited until they were faint before leaving the second floor corridor. She walked down the steps and she watched as many Death Eaters walked through the Entrance Doors out onto the grounds.

When she couldn't hear anything else she made her way down the rest of the stairs and she entered the Great Hall. Everyone was already in there. She was closest to Remus and Tonks who appeared to be talking heatedly.

'You could be killed?' Remus said standing close to Tonks.

'I can look out for myself, and guess what? I'm still here?'

'Don't do that,' Remus said quietly.

Tonks hugged Remus lightly. 'Look, I'll be fine and I know how you feel about this baby but it is a blessing. You will see.'

Remus looked away in annoyance and he saw Rachel. He moved away from Tonks quickly and almost ran towards Rachel. He hugged her quickly before grabbing her arms to get her to look at him. 'Are you alright? Where you were? I thought something had happened.'

Rachel broke free of his grip and held a hand up. 'Remus,' she said firmly. 'Relax, I am fine. I was just on the second floor. There's a stunned Death Eater there now. I didn't want to be seen by a Death Eater coming back down here.'

'Did you hear the message?' Remus asked.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah,' she said exhaling. 'Where is Harry?'

'I don't know,' Remus said shrugging. 'He's probably with Ron and Hermione, they're not here either.' Remus paused while looking at Rachel. 'Tonks is right; you couldn't have stopped Colin's death.'

'I don't want to talk about it,' Rachel said impatiently.

He wanted to say more but Rachel cut across. 'Who else has died?'

Remus sighed. 'Well, Hestia died, which I think you saw, and Colin, Michael Corner, a Ravenclaw student was killed by Dolohov not long after the battle started. Cho Chang is injured but Madam Pomfrey is looking after her and some others just have some cuts and scratches.'

It went silent between them. Remus hugged Rachel again but for longer this time. When he released her, he gave her a faint smile. She wanted things to be Ok, but they weren't. She looked around the Great Hall, the Weasley's were huddled together, but Charlie wasn't there. She looked away and sighed lightly. She wasn't quite sure how to feel at the moment.

'Are there giants outside?' Rachel asked after a few more moments of silence.

Remus nodded gravely. 'Yeah, he's also got the werewolves, namely Greyback on his side too as you know and we saw some Acromantula's before too, they're not hard to get rid of but there are many of them.'

'Are the centaurs in this battle too?'

'No,' Remus said shaking his head. 'They could strongly help us out but they keep saying they don't want to involve themselves in wizard affairs.'

Rachel nodded but said nothing more. They still had forty minutes left. She couldn't stop thinking about Harry. Would he go to the Forest and face the Dark Lord? Would he sacrifice himself for everyone he loved? She knew they had to meet, but she wasn't sure she wanted it to happen in the Forbidden Forest.

When the hour was up the rumbling outside started again and Rachel was still holding her wand. She didn't want to let it go, it had become her weapon and she knew she needed it still. There was a loud crashing at the top of the Great Hall and the windows at the top were smashed in. Many people shouted and screamed at the noise and the people underneath scrambled to get out of the way. The doors to the Hall opened and a large group of Death Eaters piled in.

In the middle of them was Hagrid, and he was holding Harry in his arms, dead.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

Rachel cried out and wanted to run to Harry but Remus held her back. He took a good grip of her and took her over to where Tonks was standing. Rachel still tried to get to Harry though she failed. Others in the room were upset, a couple of people were upset and many gasped. The Dark Lord followed them into the room. He had an evil and triumphant smile upon his face.

Everyone in the room parted to the sides and Voldemort walked up to the front of the Great Hall. He stood on the slightly raised platform and his white face cracked into a ghastly smile. 'Place the boy-who survived-by-luck at my feet.'

She watched as Hagrid walked towards the Dark Lord and did as he was told. He placed Harry at Voldemort's feet and walked away slightly. There were large tear drops ran down Hagrid's face and into his beard. Rachel knew he and Harry were very good friends. Many of the Death Eaters seemed very pleased with themselves; they now believed themselves to have won but Rachel's blood boiled. This wasn't over by a long shot.

Remus was still holding onto her tightly. Voldemort began his I-am-so-great speech. 'Now you have all seen that Harry Potter was never going to beat me. He tried to run away when it was time to face me. I thought he was brave at first but he then decided to change his mind. He turned and before he could get too far away I sent the killing curse and it wrapped around him, and he fell to the ground dead.'

It was still quiet, so Voldemort continued. 'I hope none of you actually thought he could beat me. I know more magic than he does, I am much older than he is. Harry Potter was nothing more than a mere child. You can now see that I am the greater person here and this school and the wizarding world are now mine to control. I will not-'

The rest of Voldemort's speech was drowned out when Bellatrix's voice pierced the silence. 'HE IS GONE!' she screamed.

Everyone only just appeared to have noticed that Harry was no longer at the Dark Lord's feet. He wasn't even visible. It was as though he just disappeared. Remus let go of Rachel in his confusion and Rachel wiped her eyes and face, which had become wet after seeing Harry dead, well, when she thought he was dead. He couldn't have moved if he was dead.

She and many others looked around them to see if they could see where Harry went, though everyone seemed confused. 'Kill them all,' Voldemort shouted to his followers.

The wands came out again and the spells flew around the Great Hall. Rachel was almost instantly separated from Remus as the Death Eaters spread themselves out around the Great Hall. She was quickly pulled into a duel with an unmasked Death Eater. She recognised him, it was Amycus. He was one of the Death Eaters that had taken her to the Muggle village when the Dark Lord said he no longer needed her.

He leered at her and they duelled but it didn't last long. He tried a curse on her, which she didn't recognise; it let out a stream of purple. She managed to avoid it and she threw a disarming spell at him which he easily blocked. Before he could get out another spell she sent a stunning spell at him and it seemed to hit him in the face. He fell to the floor and groaned. His sister who had been duelling Professor Sprout screamed and slashed Sprout across the neck and moved over to Rachel quickly.

Rachel couldn't help but look at Sprout whose neck was bleeding profusely and she was struggling to breathe. She dropped her wand and she fell to the ground onto her back. She had her eyes up at the ceiling and she was holding her neck, as though trying to stop the bleeding.

Rachel wanted to go over and help but she was stopped by Alecto was now wanted revenge. However, she was quickly joined by Ginny who fought beside her. Together they both defeated Alecto and she lay on the ground, stunned, beside her brother. They said nothing as they parted and went to fight someone else. Rachel thought it was a good sign.

She looked to the double doors and watched as both Charlie and Slughorn came running into the Great Hall, why wasn't Slughorn here before? She felt very nearly elated when she saw Charlie. Her heart felt like it skipped a beat. Their eyes locked for a moment and Charlie sent her a very small smile before running in the opposite direction.

She then moved her attention back onto the battle and she watched as Molly and Neville both duelled with Bellatrix, while Moody dealt with her husband, Rodolphus. His brother, Rabastan, was fighting both Bill and Fleur and Hermione and Luna were busy with Yaxley. She watched as Voldemort duelled with other members of the Order including Emmeline Vance.

A loud crash at the end of the Great Hall caused most people to stop fighting. The centaurs charged into the Great Hall along with the house-elves from the kitchens. Rachel quickly looked around but she couldn't see Harry anywhere. She was starting to get confused.

Rachel then yelped loudly as she was grabbed roughly from behind. She tried to move her wand around to stun the person but she couldn't reach. The person holding her then bumped her arm which knocked her wand out of her hand. She struggled in the person's grip but it didn't help. He laughed and she was sure he was about to curse her.

'Didn't think you'd have the guts for this battle,' a hoarse voice said.

She recognised it as Walden Macnair. He was the person holding her. She continued to struggle; she didn't want to be his next victim. She was suddenly able to move as she felt something move from behind her. She turned and watched as an angry Hagrid pick Macnair up by the back of his black robe and threw him into the opposite wall.

Rachel's eyes widened and she looked towards the heap on the floor, which was now Macnair. He didn't move again. Rachel quickly wondered if that had killed him. It was no less than he deserved but she did feel that Azkaban might be a better, death was almost a release. Rachel shook herself from those thoughts and she thanked Hagrid and he beamed a big, wide smile at her.

She picked up her wand and got back into the fight. It didn't take her long to be drawled into another duel. This time it was with Dolohov. Rachel couldn't help but feel a little bit of fear. She knew he was dangerous and quite a skilled wizard. She knew she had to be careful. A spell came towards her and she ducked but she slipped on the floor and fell slightly, scratching her hands and arm. She stood up again but fell again from a trip jinx.

Dolohov laughed loudly and he slashed the air with his wand and a large gash appeared on Rachel's cheek, splattering her robes, face and neck with blood. She cried out from the pain and sent a trip jinx back at Dolohov which missed him. He laughed again and Rachel tried to stun him but he blocked it. 'Maybe you should try an unforgivable,' he whispered to her.

She decided to ignore that. She never wanted to use one of those curses. 'Crucio,' Dolohov said loudly.

The curse hit Rachel hard and her wand fell from her grasp as her body writhed and thrashed about in pain and agony. She wanted to scream but nothing came out, the pain was too much, it was overwhelming. It stopped shortly and someone stepped over her and took over her duel with Dolohov. It was Kingsley. She was happy that someone noticed but a little disappointed that she couldn't finish him herself.

Dolohov went down quickly by a curse from Kingsley, who then went to help McGonagall and Slughorn who were both duelling Voldemort. Rachel looked towards Molly, who had just taken down Bellatrix who fell with a scream. The Hall then went silent as Voldemort pushed the three people in front of him away. He looked towards Bellatrix and an almost sad look fell across his face.

It was quickly forgotten, however, when Harry showed himself in the room. Everyone stopped their duelling and fighting and turned their attention between Harry and Voldemort who were now facing each other. Harry seemed determined still and Voldemort looked livid. It was like Harry had the inability to die. It infuriated Voldemort to no end.

He fired a curse at Harry but Harry moved quickly and it went straight past him, hitting the wall behind him. Rachel gasped slightly as Harry moved again, another spell missing him. 'You can't win Riddle,' Harry said firmly.

'You dare-' Voldemort started.

'Yes, I dare,' Harry said cutting across. 'I died for everyone in this room and I would do it again.'

Voldemort didn't seem to understand what Harry was saying. 'No more talk, Potter, you shall die now!' he shouted before throwing another curse at Harry which missed him again.

At the same time, Harry and Voldemort sent a spell at each other, Harry used a disarming spell and Voldemort use the killing curse. The two spells connected but it didn't break. It looked like it had turned into a connected tug of war. Rachel watched in awe as they connected seemed to grow stronger. She gasped again as Voldemort's wand turned around and hit him square in the chest.

The connection was now broken and Harry remained where he was. He was breathing heavily and the room was silent. Rachel finally took her eyes off Harry and looked towards the black heap on the other side of the room. It wasn't moving. The Death Eaters had all moved to the sides of the room. Harry slowly walked over to the heap and he bent down slowly.

Rachel straightened up a little more to see what he was doing. His face was strained as he placed two fingers on Voldemort's neck. He exhaled heavily and stood up again. 'He's dead,' he announced.

Everyone in the room, minus the Death Eaters, cheered and shouted in joy. Before the Death Eaters could escape Harry moved quickly, 'Round them up, quickly,' he shouted.

The members of the Order, the teachers and the rest of the students moved quickly and cornered many of the Death Eaters and pinned them where they were. Some of them dropped their wands immediately but others appeared to want to fight.

Rachel still had a hold of her wand and she joined them in capturing them. When it was over some members of the Order placed some tables and chairs in the room and some people sat down. Madam Pomfrey was walking around the room and helping people that were injured. The Order and others then started going around the school and bringing in their dead.

After Madam Pomfrey helped Rachel's gash on her cheek she went to help them. She had scratches and cuts in other places but they could be healed quickly and the pain was bearable. She looked around the room. Remus was still alive which she was more than thankful for and so was Tonks, though she was lying down on the floor, she appeared injured but fine.

She walked over to one side of the room and she saw where their dead now lay. She helped bring in Colin's body. She still felt responsible. She should have acted quicker, she saw what was happening. She looked the others over, Moody, Hestia, Emmeline, Professor Sprout, Michael Corner, Marietta Edgecombe and Professor Babbling. They all looked quite peaceful, as though they were only sleeping.

She saw that Professor Sinistra had been injured, but Rachel thought she looked alright. She placed her wand back into her blood covered robes and sighed. She was sad to see Moody fall. He had frightened her just a little bit but he was good, brave man.

She jumped slightly as Charlie stood beside her. They turned to each other. Charlie appeared sad. 'Are you alright?' Rachel asked.

Charlie nodded numbly. He didn't seem able to talk. His eyes went back to his family and then looked at the floor. Rachel peered over Charlie's shoulder and saw Fred lying on the ground, he wasn't moving.

'I'm sorry,' Rachel whispered.

She moved closer to Charlie and hugged him tightly. It appeared to be what he needed. He hugged her back with great force and he exhaled weakly. Rachel had never seen Charlie like this before. They continued to hug for a while before people starting moving and getting things together. Remus walked over to both of them.

'Have you two seen Professor Snape anywhere?'

They both shook their heads and Remus sighed. 'We're going to go look for him.'

'I want to help,' Rachel said quickly.

'That isn't a good idea,' Remus said slowly.

'No, I want to help,' Rachel repeated stubbornly.

'Alright, but stay with Charlie,' he said before walking back to Tonks.

Together, Rachel and Charlie left the Great Hall and went in search of Snape. They both walked down to the Shrieking Shack where they met up with Bill and Fleur. Rachel wanted to talk to Bill more than anything but she knew it wasn't the right time. She still had to talk about the last battle and she wanted to do it face to face.

They all began searching together silently. They all heard a noise upstairs and they went up quickly and entered the third room. It was dark and cold. The windows had been smashed and there was blood on the floor which was coming from Snape, who was lying on the ground. Bill ran to him and felt for a pulse.

'He's alive, but barely,' Bill said heavily. 'Let's get him to the castle.'

'But isn't he an enemy?' Fleur asked frowning.

'Maybe,' Bill replied. 'But we're going to have to find that out later. We can't just leave him here to die.'

Using his wand, Bill lifted Snape into the air gently and they all walked back to the castle with him. They entered the doors and Fleur went to get Madam Pomfrey. She came bustling out of the doors with Fleur behind her and she attended to Snape immediately. 'Let's take him to the hospital wing,' she said to Bill.

He nodded and they left together, Fleur following behind. Rachel and Charlie stayed where they were. All the others that helped to search came back and went back to getting things ready. It made Rachel think. 'Are you leaving soon?' she asked.

Charlie nodded. He took her hand and they walked back outside onto the grounds. They walked over to the lake. Charlie turned Rachel so she faced him and he swooped down and kissed her on the lips passionately. It surprised Rachel but she immediately relaxed and placed her arms around his neck. Charlie placed his hands on her waist, then moved them to her back and pulled her closer to him.

When they parted Charlie hugged her quickly before moving to kiss her again. Rachel smiled and ran a hand through his hair. When they broke the kiss, Charlie took her hand again and they sat down on the ledge. Rachel looked around quickly. It was still dark, but she knew the sun would be up soon. The water on the lake was quiet and smooth.

Charlie chuckled, his blue eyes twinkling. 'Sorry for that, but I've been waiting to do that for a while.'

Rachel smiled. 'The feelings are mutual.' She paused. 'I thought you hated me before.'

'Why would you think that?'

'Because I hadn't heard from you and because of what happened to Bill,' she said slowly.

Charlie's smiled faded slightly. 'What happened to Bill was unfortunate and I was angry about it at first, but you didn't know it was going to happen. I'm grateful that Bill helped you when you were in trouble. And about when you were captured I was going to write but my parents told me not to, they thought it would be better to give you space. Many times I thought about coming back and seeing you. I just wanted to hug you and tell you it was going to be alright.'

Hearing that made Rachel smile even more, all of her fears were now gone and she knew that Charlie was the one, he was perfect. 'So, we're OK?' she asked unsurely.

'Yeah,' he said slowly. 'We're Ok.'

He leaned forwards and kissed her again. She smiled at him and then her thoughts went to Harry. She wondered how he was feeling now, knowing that it was all over. He no longer had to look over his shoulder wherever he went. He was now free and able to live a normal life, something Rachel knew he had always wanted.

* * *

Later that night after Charlie had left Rachel returned to Gryffindor Tower. The Fat Lady seemed over happy and appeared to be celebrating. She didn't wait for a password; she opened instantly and told her to enter. It made Rachel smile. When she entered the common room, there were many students in there.

Her eyes instantly found Harry and he stood up when he saw her. He walked to her quickly and hugged her. She hugged him back. She was very glad to see him, alive and happy. 'You did it,' Rachel whispered, still smiling. 'I'm sure mum and dad would be proud.'

'They'd be proud of you too,' Harry whispered back.

Rachel almost fell into tears right there. They released each other and Rachel barely had a second to breathe before Hermione almost bowled her over in a big hug. It made Rachel laugh out loud. When Hermione released her, Rachel looked at her. She looked so excited and happy.

'She and Ron finally kissed,' Harry said.

'Really?' Rachel asked looking at Hermione.

She nodded. 'Yes, he finally understands.'

'Hey!' Ron called out. 'I always understood.'

The room erupted into laughter and Rachel moved over the chairs. Before she could sit down she saw Ginny and Ginny stopped in her tracks. Harry, Ron and Hermione looked between them silently. Rachel walked over and stood in front of her. Ginny seemed a little shy suddenly. Rachel decided to speak first.

'I know we've had our differences and mistrust with each other but we both have something in common, which is Harry and I would like to think we could be friends.'

Ginny nodded slowly. 'Yeah,' she said quietly, her voice breaking a little. 'I'd like that.'

They slowly moved closer and hugged briefly before moving to sit on the armchairs before the fire. 'Feels like old times,' Hermione commented quietly.

'What?' Ron asked loudly.

There were a few sniggers. 'I mean us sitting here at the end of the day, doing homework or talking or playing games or just getting warm by the fire. Suddenly feels like old times.'

Rachel nodded at Hermione's words. She agreed with that, though she hasn't been here as long as they have but she still felt it. It did feel like home to her, like it was normal.

The teachers had spoken to most people and some students had gotten something to eat. Rachel wasn't hungry though. She said a long good-bye to Charlie and Remus and she had a small talk with Sirius. Things between them were good again which made her even happier. Charlie said he had to go back to Romania and that he would be back for the funerals which were to be soon.

They sat around the fire for a while before going to bed. Rachel laid down on her back and stared at the ceiling. She couldn't help but wonder what life was going to be like now. The Dark Lord was gone and she now had the rest of her life and so did all of her friends. She sighed and rolled onto her side. She fell into a peaceful sleep.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen 

Within the next week the funerals had been arranged for the people who died in the battle of Hogwarts. Rachel had attended with Charlie and the rest of the Order. They did a funeral for Moody and Emmeline together and then another funeral for Professors Sprout, Babbling, Michael Corner and Marietta Edgecombe, which was held at Hogwarts.

The funeral for Fred turned out to be quite private, it was for family and Order members and close friends. Rachel held Charlie's hand tightly through the whole thing. When she looked around, she noticed Molly crying non-stop and Arthur trying to console her. Bill and Fleur were holding hands. George was sitting by himself and looking at his hands most of the time. Rachel couldn't imagine how he was feeling; she couldn't bear to think about losing her own twin. Hermione was holding Ron's hand while Harry kept his arm around Ginny.

It went for a good couple of hours and they all went back to the burrow, where Molly had prepared food for everyone. They all sat around the table and began to eat. The night started off quiet until a few people starting making small conversations. Rachel still wanted to talk to Bill but she didn't want it to be in front of everyone.

Rachel sat in between Remus and Charlie and when they weren't eating they would hold hands briefly or give one another a small smile. When everyone finished eating, they all retired to the living room, where Arthur passed out small drinks of firewhiskey. George made a toast to his fallen twin and everyone took a sip of their drink.

Rachel sat on the couch with Charlie and they held hands. When she saw Bill walk into the kitchen by himself she took her chance. Charlie kept trying to tell her that it didn't matter but she wanted to hear it from Bill before she believed it. She closed the kitchen door behind her and Bill turned around slightly. When he noticed it was Rachel he went back to what he was doing. She hadn't seen his face close up until now.

'What's up?' Bill asked causally.

'I, um, was just wondering if, um, everything was alright… between us?' she asked. Her cheeks went a little pink. She felt stupid.

Bill stopped what he was doing and walked to her. He hugged her briefly before looking in her eyes. 'Of course we're fine. I don't blame you for what happened. I saw you were in trouble with Greyback and I went to help and I would do it again.'

Rachel didn't know what to say, hearing that made her want to cry. She hugged Bill again and he chuckled faintly. 'Should go back in there, my brother might think we're up to something.'

Rachel giggled slightly and went back into the living room and she sat back down beside Charlie. He smiled at her and placed his arm around her again. She felt comfortable. She knew this was how things were meant to be.

* * *

Before Rachel returned to school, Remus informed her that he and Tonks were getting married. Tonks' belly was getting bigger, though she still had five months to go. Rachel wasn't sure how to feel about them getting married. She knew Remus wasn't her father but he was very close to it. She did like Tonks but she still wasn't sure how to feel.

While she got ready, she was to be a bridesmaid. She was nervous but excited at the same time; there was a knock at the door. Rachel looked it at. 'Come in,' she called.

The door opened slowly and Tonks walked in. She was already ready. Her white dress was quite plain, but it was long and still elegant. Tonks walked over and helped her with the zipper at the back of her blue dress. Rachel thanked her and moved to put her contacts in. She stood in the bathroom while doing it. Tonks remained in the bedroom. She appeared nervous.

'Is everything alright?' Tonks asked.

'Yeah,' Rachel said, her voice echoing around the tile walls. Before she walked back out the bathroom she straightened her dress and looked herself over. The dress blue silk and it reached the floor, she loved it. She then walked over to Tonks. They hugged. 'All I want is for Remus to be happy, and I know he loves you. That's all that matters.'

Rachel moved away and sat on the bed to put her shoes on. 'I know,' Tonks said quietly. 'But I know Remus is your godfather. I want you to be comfortable with this too and Remus and I are having a baby.'

'I know, I can tell,' Rachel said smiling. She stood up and sighed. 'I will admit that I did worry about it at first. I've always had Remus' attention when I wanted or needed it and I felt that maybe he wouldn't have time for me anymore after this, but I know he loves me and I know he wouldn't forget about me. I've already spoken to him about this and he assured me that nothing will change between us.'

Tonks smiled, she looked relieved. When they were both ready they left together, the wedding was to be held in London. Rachel was surprised that Tonks had only her as a bridesmaid and not more people, like Hermione or Fleur but she was still happy. Remus had Sirius as his best man. The wedding was being held in a large garden. When they arrived Rachel immediately saw a large white tent. It was quite large.

'Is Charlie here?' Tonks asked while they waited outside for things to begin.

Rachel nodded. 'Yeah, he should be inside.'

It didn't take long for the tent to fill with soft, slow music. Tonks sighed nervously and she smiled, she looked a little shaky. Rachel wondered if she would feel like this one day. It made her thoughts go to Charlie. She cleared her throat. 'Are we ready?'

Tonks nodded and Rachel then moved into position. She waited at the back and she walked through the slit. The smell in the air hit Rachel instantly. It was a beautiful smell and it filled the tent. The floor was covered in a white carpet and everyone in the room was sitting on silver chairs and there were blue and white balloons, which covered the top area and there was a long, rectangular table on the far side, where the cake and other food was sitting. Rachel thought it was absolutely beautiful.

As she walked to the front she found Charlie and their eyes locked. He smiled widely at her and she gave him a small smile in return. She looked back to the front and she saw both Remus and Sirius standing there. Sirius winked at her, it made Rachel want to giggle but she didn't, Sirius was back to his old, handsome self. Remus was wearing new dress robes, which she and Tonks had brought together. Remus wasn't too happy about it but Tonks made him take them.

When she reached the front, Remus stepped forwards and hugged Rachel closely. She smiled at him before moving to stand on the other side. The curtain at the back opened again and Tonks walked through. Everyone in the tent stood up and watched as she walked down. Rachel thought Tonks looked a little embarrassed.

Rachel looked over at Tonks' parents. They looked happy but Rachel wondered how they felt about Remus being with a werewolf. Rachel didn't know how that felt. She was sure Tonks' parents didn't plan on her marrying and having a baby with a werewolf. But Rachel hoped they were happy for both of them. They both deserve it.

Tonks reached the front and both she and Remus smiled at each other. Tonks looked very happy. They turned to the front and the ceremony began. Rachel felt a mixer of happiness and sadness when the wizard minister said that they were now husband and wife. She loved Remus; she hoped she wasn't going to slowly lose him.

When the party began Rachel was immediately pulled onto the dance floor by Charlie. She laughed and they began to dance. She noticed that it wasn't one of Charlie's strengths. After a while Rachel dragged Charlie off the dance floor and they both got a drink. 'Let's go congratulate them,' Charlie said when they finished their drinks.

He took her hand and they walked over to where Remus and Tonks were standing. Rachel hugged Tonks and Charlie shook hands with Remus, then they swapped. Rachel hugged Remus, while Charlie hugged Tonks. Rachel still felt a little sad. 'Nothing will change,' Remus whispered to her.

She continued to hug him and she nodded her head faintly. 'I love you,' Remus whispered.

'I love you too,' Rachel whispered back.

Remus released her and kissed Rachel on the cheek. She took Charlie's hand and she took him back to the dance floor. The music had turned slow and Rachel put her arms around Charlie's neck and he placed he hands around her waist. He moved his head and kissed her neck slowly and Rachel exhaled sharply and giggled. It tickled her skin.

* * *

She and Charlie danced and talked with other Order members for the rest of the night. At the end of the wedding Remus and Tonks went home and were leaving for their honeymoon the next day. Rachel returned to Grimmauld Place with Charlie and they both went straight to her room. Rachel closed the door firmly and Charlie made sure it was locked. Rachel walked further into the room and she looked Charlie over. He looked quite handsome all dressed up. He smiled her and Rachel could have sworn her legs went weak at the knees.

Charlie closed the distance between them and he kissed her deeply. He placed a hand on the back of her head and moved in closer. Rachel moaned faintly and she touched his arms. She hadn't been in this position since she was captured. She hasn't slept with Charlie yet. This would be her first time with him.

Charlie broke the kiss and his blue eyes looked down into her green ones. He searched them for some kind of sign. 'Do you want to do this?' he asked.

Rachel nodded. 'I'm not a virgin, Charlie,' she reminded him.

Charlie shrugged and dismissed it. 'You are to me. I want your first time to be done properly and I want you to be comfortable and certain about this.'

'I am certain,' Rachel replied.

She was happy that Charlie said it was her first time. She wanted to forget about all that too. She wanted this memory to overtake all the others. Rachel showed her certainty by slowly unbuttoning Charlie's shirt. She pushed it off his shoulders and they both let it fall to the ground gracefully. Rachel took out her wand and she made the room darker. Charlie didn't appear to like that; he took his own wand and made the room lighter and he opened the curtains, so the moon shined throughout the room.

'I want to see you,' he whispered before pressing their lips together again. Rachel ran her hands down Charlie's chest. When they parted she looked down. The glow from the moon highlighted his taut chest and his muscles made Rachel's mouth water. Charlie smiled as he watched Rachel. He lifted her head and kissed her again, this time, it was slow and gentle, and they savoured each other's taste.

Charlie slowly took most of Rachel's clothes off, leaving her bra and undies on for the moment. He looked her over and he noticed the large scratch on her leg. It suddenly made Rachel feel self conscious. She wanted to cover up. Charlie grabbed her gently. 'You're beautiful.'

Rachel froze as she looked at Charlie. Rachel slowly smiled and relaxed again. They shared another kiss and Rachel gently ran her tongue along Charlie's mouth. Charlie then took that opportunity to slip his tongue into her mouth, tasting her.

Rachel moaned lightly when his tongue entered her mouth. She broke off the kiss and started to nibble her way down his neck. She moved her hand and slid a finer in the waistline of his pants and she undid the top button. Charlie was quite surprised.

'Have you been up to something I should know about?' he asked mockingly.

'No,' Rachel said grinning. 'I just know that I want this, and you.'

Charlie smiled and put his arms around her. He ran a hand through her hair and held her close to him. Rachel liked the feeling of their bodies together. Charlie began to move forwards and he took them over to the bed. Rachel landed on the bed and Charlie joined her. He immediately placed her on her back and he covered her body with his.

Slowly, he took off her bra and undies and he slipped his pants off quickly. Rachel felt down his body with her hands and when they reached his groin she hesitated for a moment. Charlie whispered to her that it was alright and she took a deep breath and continued. She could feel the hair around his organ, it was sparse and when she looked down she saw that it was a fiery red, just like his hair.

She touched his penis and it made him jump slightly. She wrapped her hand around it and moved a little. Charlie hissed through his teeth and his hips bucked. While she continued her moving, Charlie looked to her chest and took a pink nipple in his mouth, it made Rachel give a startled cry, she hadn't expected it.

Rachel was then forced to let go of Charlie as he moved down her body, licking and kissing his way past her navel, and to her silky, black curls. As soon as his tongue came into contact with her clit, she arched off the bed. Her hands were now tangled with his short, red hair, and she howled as her first orgasm hit her hard. Charlie stayed where he was and he lapped up the juices which now flowed from Rachel's body.

He climbed back up her body and kissed her hard. Rachel could taste herself on his lips. It wasn't as bad as she thought it would be. 'Sorry,' Charlie hushed. Rachel shook her head, dismissing it. She actually didn't mind. She did feel surprised at how different Charlie seemed right now, though she found it such a turn on. She hadn't seen this side until now.

Charlie pressed their bodies together and he gently opened her legs a little wider. 'Are you ready?' he asked. His breathing was a little shaky.

Rachel nodded. She was ready for this. She placed her arms around him again and Charlie lined the tip of his cock and easily slid into her tight, slick passage. They both moaned slightly. Rachel lifted her legs and wrapped them around Charlie's body and she grabbed his arms, urging him to go faster. Charlie lost what little control he had left and he pounded into her body. He knew he wasn't going to last long, but he wanted Rachel to come again.

'Oh, Charlie!' Rachel cried out as she approached her second orgasm.

'Come for me again, I want to feel your pussy squeeze my cock.' Charlie reached between them and stroked her clit with his fingers. Rachel cried out from his words and the force of his actions as she slipped into oblivion. She let out a stream of mumbled obscenities. She then felt Charlie come as her pussy clamped around his cock.

'OH, RACHEL.' Charlie screamed out her name as he rode his orgasm through. Rachel kissed him and moved her hips against him to help.

Charlie collapsed on top of her, panting. He stayed there for a moment, savouring the feeling of Rachel's body underneath him, before he rolled off her and gathered her close to him and nuzzled her hair. Rachel relaxed in his arms and giggled faintly. 'Are you alright?' Charlie asked when they both settled.

She nodded. 'Yeah,' she replied softly. 'That was good. You surprised me.'

'Really? How?' Charlie asked frowning.

'I don't know. I mean this was our first time together and... I don't know. I've never seen that side of you. It surprised me a little,' she said.

'Well, you've seen it now,' he said slowly. He leaned in and kissed her neck and Rachel felt her skin go bumpy.

'I love you, Charlie,' Rachel whispered inaudibly.

Charlie smiled in her hair. 'I love you,' he said back.

They both went quiet and fell asleep together.

* * *

In the morning when Rachel woke up, she looked to the other side of the bed, Charlie was no longer there. Something inside her fell. She sighed and looked at the bed, it was a mess but the floor had been cleaned up. Charlie must have picked up her clothes before he left. She got out of bed and went to the bathroom for a quick shower. She placed some clean jeans on with a top and went downstairs.

She could hear a few noises coming from the kitchen. She wondered if it was Sirius. She opened the door and she felt another surprise. It was Charlie. He turned when the door had opened and he cracked a smile. He walked to her and planted a kiss on her lips. 'Good morning,' he said happily. She could only imagine why he was so happy.

'Morning,' she said. 'What are you doing?' she asked walking further into the room.

'I'm making breakfast,' he said turning back to the stove. 'There'll be enough for Sirius too, if he's here.'

'Oh no,' Rachel gasped.

Charlie turned to look at her again. 'What?' he asked, his face turning serious.

'If Sirius is here, then we...'

The kitchen door opened again and Sirius walked past her. She closed her eyes for a moment, fear and embarrassment flooded her.

'Should have used a silencing charm,' Sirius said finishing her sentence. He took a plate of food from Charlie and sat down at the table. Rachel still hadn't moved.

'I'm sorry,' she said to Sirius.

He chuckled. 'Relax, you should be glad that Remus wasn't here and that it was only me that heard it.'

Rachel nodded and then walked to the table. Charlie joined her almost immediately and he set a plate of bacon and eggs in front of her. 'Thank you.'

Charlie kissed her on the head. 'You're welcome.' He sat down beside her and they all ate together. Rachel cleaned up afterwards, with Charlie's help while Sirius went to feed Buckbeak. 'I can't believe I forgot about Sirius being here. It's his house. How did I forget?'

Charlie chuckled. 'It's alright; I don't think Sirius has any problems with it, besides it could have been worse. We could have been at the burrow, or your brother and my sister could have been staying here.'

'Isn't that a little weird?' Rachel asked.

'What?' Charlie asked confused.

'Well, my brother and your sister are dating and we're dating.'

'And?'

'Don't you think that's strange?'

'No,' Charlie said simply.

Rachel said nothing more about it. She hadn't really thought about it before. Things between her and Ginny had died down and they were no longer wary of each other. Rachel was happy about that. She knew most of Charlie's family were happy about them being together but Molly wasn't too keen on it. She kept saying that the age difference was too much. It made Rachel smile; Remus had thought the same thing.

* * *

The next week, Rachel returned to school with Harry and the others. They needed to finish their last year, even though it was now technically the summer holidays. They were the only ones who had to come back. Rachel was kind of glad for it. She did want to finish her last year and they wouldn't be coming back here for next year.

Hermione was glad about it too but Harry and Ron both complained. Hermione kept telling them that they would only be there about a month, then have exams and then they could go home and do everything else that they wanted to do. When they entered the common room, Rachel and Hermione both went over to the message board.

Ginny joined them soon after and she immediately took a flyer off the wall about a graduation ball. Harry and Ron both groaned. 'Sounds like fun,' Hermione commented. Rachel silently agreed with her. It would be a good way to finish off their last year and say good-bye to everyone.

'Can other people go?' Rachel asked.

'Yes,' Hermione answered after looking the flyer over. 'You can bring family and all that.'

Rachel smiled. She thought of asking Charlie. She knew he was back in Romania but all she had to do was ask. If he couldn't make it then it wouldn't matter. She'd still see him sometime after. She still wasn't sure what he wanted to do after school though. She had thought about playing professional Quidditch but she wasn't sure. Where would she live with Charlie? Would they have to move? Wouldn't they travel a lot?

She tried not to think about it too much. She still hadn't told anyone that it's what she wanted to be. She thought Remus might support it but she did know how he felt about her playing Quidditch.

Before she went to bed later that night, Rachel wrote a letter to Charlie, asking if he would be able to come to the ball with her. She told him the date and time and to reply when he could. She knew he loved his dragons but she hoped she had a place with him also.

* * *

A month later, when exam time came Rachel felt nervous. She loved how Hermione paced every corridor they stood in and even during meals she could try to recite everything. It made Rachel smile. She knew Hermione was intelligent, she didn't know what Hermione was worried about. The subject that Rachel was most worried about was History of Magic. All the other subjects she was happy with how she did in them but History of Magic she found quite boring and it was hard to pay any attention to it.

They all sat in the Great Hall and waited patiently for their papers to be given to them. She immediately heard Hermione's quill scratching away on the parchment. Rachel took a slow, deep breath and picked up her own quill and began to write.

'We don't get our results for another two weeks,' Hermione said loudly. They were all in the common room and Hermione was again pacing.

'Stop, Hermione,' Ron called out. 'You're making it sound worse than it is. I don't want to know the results.'

'Neither do I,' Harry said.

Rachel looked at him. He was sitting on one of the sofas with Ginny sitting on the floor in front of him, between his legs. Ron was sitting on the armchair and when Hermione walked past him, he grabbed her arm and pulled her to him. She fell onto his lap and Hermione faked being angry with him. Rachel suddenly felt alone.

'I know how you feel about exams, but I want to do well,' Hermione said clearly.

'But you will do well,' said Ron.

'Yeah,' Harry agreed. 'You always beat us.'

Rachel looked to Ginny, she had been pretty quiet. Her head was against Harry's leg and she had her eyes closed. She appeared to just be listening. Rachel just watched their conversation. She wasn't really up to talking right now. She was nervous about the exam results as well but it didn't make her want to talk about it.

She was looking forward to the ball. Charlie had replied to her letter saying that he would be there but he wasn't sure if he would be on time. It didn't matter to Rachel if he was going to be late; she just wanted him to be there.

She had also spoken to Remus; he said he would be there also, that he wouldn't miss it for anything. He told her that the honeymoon was good and that Tonks was even bigger. She wondered how Remus was coping with it. She knew that he loved Tonks but being a werewolf, that would have to make it strange to have a baby, and it must be quite scary.

* * *

On the night of the graduation ball, Rachel had already spent a good three hours just getting ready. She wanted to look nice but not over do it. She decided to leave her hair and as it was and not to wear too much make-up. She chose to wear a nice red dress for the night with some new shoes that she bought.

Hermione came into the room muttering about something. Rachel smiled as she watched. Hermione was wearing a dark blue dress and silver high heels. Rachel thought she looked great. She turned back to what she was doing. She made sure her contacts were in properly and she placed a bracelet around her wrist. She looked into the mirror again and fluffed her long, black hair. She sighed at her reflection.

She left Gryffindor Tower with Hermione and they walked to the Great Hall. Harry, Ron and Ginny were already outside. The boys were wearing their dress robes and Ron looked a little uncomfortable. Ginny was wearing dark green dress. Rachel thought it nicely matched Harry's eyes. They all entered the Great Hall together.

The room had been done up well for the night. There were balloons everywhere and food on most tables. Rachel found Remus quickly and she went over. She hugged him. She thought he looked very well.

'I'm very proud,' Remus said when he let her go.

'You should be,' Rachel joked.

They both smiled and Rachel looked around again. The Weasley's had arrived but Charlie wasn't with them. Bill approached them with Fleur on his arm. 'Charlie's coming,' he told her. 'But he said he'd be late.'

Rachel nodded and thanked him. Bill and Fleur walked away and Remus turned Rachel to him. 'Sirius told me that you and Charlie were together on the night of the wedding.'

'Sirius told you,' Rachel said slowly.

Remus said nothing. Rachel couldn't tell if he was angry or disappointed. 'Yeah, Charlie went back to Grimmauld Place with me and he stayed the night.'

'In your room?' Remus said.

Rachel nodded. 'Yes, and you know I'm an adult. Besides, I thought you liked me dating Charlie. You should be glad I'm not dating a Slytherin.'

'Yes, you're probably right,' Remus said quietly.

Rachel smiled. Remus didn't say anything else on the subject. They all sat down and had dinner together. Rachel kept looking at the double doors. She wondered where Charlie was. What was keeping him? She heard Remus chuckled and she turned to him. 'What?' she asked looking a little alarmed.

'He'll be here,' Remus said quietly.

'Yeah,' Rachel breathed. It was nice of Remus to say it but it didn't really help how she felt. She wanted Charlie here now. She had missed him already. Half-way through the night Rachel was still sitting in her chair, waiting for Charlie. Was he not coming?

Rachel then suddenly yelped as she was pulled up from her chair. It was only Harry. He took a good hold of her hand and dragged her over to the dance floor. 'You should be dancing and celebrating,' Harry said smiling.

'I thought you hated dancing,' Rachel said to him.

He shrugged. 'It's a party, have to celebrate somehow.'

Rachel decided to have some fun and not wait and worry. She stayed with Harry and the others and dance with them. After a while Hermione danced over to her and nudged her. She was looking over at the door. It was Charlie, he had just walked in. Rachel thanked her and walked over to Charlie. His face lit up with a wide smile when he saw her.

She gave him a quick kiss. 'I'm sorry I'm late,' he said quickly. 'I didn't think I'd be this late.'

'Was it another baby dragon?' she asked.

Charlie looked confused for a moment before realising what she had said. He chuckled. 'No, nothing like that.'

Rachel felt confused now. If it wasn't work then why was he late? Was there someone else? More questions ran through her mind but before she could ask any of them, Charlie took her hand. 'Let's go outside.'

She frowned but she followed quietly. They walked through the Entrance Hall doors and out onto the grounds. Rachel could only think of it as being bad news. 'What's wrong?' she asked when they were near the lake.

Charlie finally stopped. He appeared nervous. 'There is a reason I'm late and Bill knows about this, I'm guessing he was the one that told you I'd be late.'

Rachel just nodded. Charlie took a deep breath. 'Well, when we were together before... you said you loved me, did you mean it?'

'Of course I did,' Rachel said quickly. She was still confused.

'I'm glad to hear that,' he breathed.

'Does this have something to do with you being late?' Rachel asked.

'Yes, it does. I'll get there,' he said smiling. 'I'm late tonight because I was choosing a ring.'

Rachel was still frowning, she still didn't understand. Charlie put his hand into his jean pocket and drew out a small red box. Rachel gasped faintly. Was it what she was thinking. Charlie's smile went wider and he opened the box. Inside was a silver ring, with a sapphire in the middle with five small diamonds around it.

'I love you,' Charlie said softly. 'I'm hoping you'll agree to be my wife.'

Rachel gasped again. It was the last thing she had expected. She looked into Charlie's blue eyes, all she saw was love. 'Is this a bit soon?' she asked slowly.

Charlie shrugged. 'I don't think so. I know how I feel about you and I know you're the one, so I figured, why wait? We don't have to get married tomorrow. Besides, what if I'm in Romania and you meet someone else?'

'That won't happen,' Rachel murmured.

'I know, but if you look at it, you'll think of me,' Charlie said smiling faintly.

Rachel couldn't believe she had to think about it. Many more questions ran through her mind. About where they would live, what would she do? She shook herself from those thoughts and looked at the ring before looking at Charlie again. She knew how she felt about him too.

'I would love to be your wife,' Rachel said softly.

Charlie seemed overjoyed. He took the ring out of the box and gently placed it on Rachel's finger. He then moved quickly and kissed her lovingly. He took her hand and let them into the Great Hall. They went straight over to his family. They all turned to look at them as they came rushing over.

'She said yes,' Charlie said happily to Bill.

Bill's face turned into a huge grin and he ran to Rachel and hugged her. Rachel yelped in surprise before getting her head together and hugging him back.

'What do you mean, dear?' Molly asked her son.

'Rachel and I are getting married,' he announced.

A few other Order members had walked over, interested in what was going on. Remus turned to look at Rachel quickly. Other than Molly, he seemed the most surprised. Most of the Weasley's looked stunned also. Arthur was the first to move or say anything. He walked over to Rachel and hugged her.

'Welcome to the family,' he said to her smiling.

Charlie talked to his family and Rachel took Remus' arm and they walked away from the others. 'Are you alright?' Rachel asked him. She was a little worried about how he would take this.

Remus shrugged a little. 'Yeah, I just didn't expect it,' he said languidly.

'I didn't expect it either,' said Rachel. 'But I do love Charlie and he loves me. I hope you don't disapprove.'

'Why would I? I think Charlie's a good man and he'll be a good husband. I am happy for you,' Remus said smiling.

Hearing that made Rachel happy, she hugged Remus and she held on for a while. She wished she could tell him everything she thought about him but it would take too long and she wasn't sure that she'd be able to find the right words. But he knew she loved him too, she hoped that was enough for now.

For the rest of the night Rachel danced with Charlie, her brother and the rest of her friends. She didn't want it to end. She wanted this night to last forever.

* * *

A few weeks later, Rachel made her way to Spinner's End. It was Kingsley that told her where Snape lived. She needed to see him, to talk to him, just one last time. This was something she had to do alone. She hadn't told anyone she was going here. She knew Charlie wouldn't like it but he would support her and Remus wouldn't like it either and he would be physically trying to stop her.

She found house number nineteen and she knocked on the door firmly. While she waited she looked around at the outside and the houses next door. She could tell this was a Muggle industrial place, before she couldn't imagine Snape living in a place like this. The other houses looked the same as this one. They were all ancient looking and quite run-down. The small courtyard in the front was run-down and the two plants that were there were dead.

The door opened and a man appeared. He was tall, with shoulder-length, greasy, black hair which was curtained around his face. His pale face looked startled as he saw the girl standing on his doorstep. Without a word, he opened the door and Rachel quietly walked in.

Snape closed the door and walked down the small corridor and Rachel followed. They walked into a living-room and Snape walked to the other side of the room. Rachel didn't walk in too far. She wouldn't be here long.

'Congratulations on your engagement,' Snape said in a low voice.

'Thanks,' Rachel said quietly. She didn't know that he knew about it. 'How did you know?'

Snape didn't answer her. He busied himself with making a couple of drinks. When he finished he walked over to Rachel and handed her a drink. Rachel wasn't sure but she took a small sip. It was Firewhiskey. 'How have you been?' Rachel asked.

Now that she was here she wasn't really sure why and she felt stuck on what to say. Snape walked away from her again and went over to the window. He moved the small curtain and peered out onto the street. He then closed the curtain and looked at Rachel. 'I have been fine,' Snape replied.

Rachel thought he looked fine. He still looked the same as before. He was still pale and everything but he still seemed alright. Rachel put her small glass down onto the stand where Snape was standing and she looked up at him. He didn't look back. He kept his eyes on the wall opposite him. Rachel touched his arm but Snape still didn't move.

'Prof- Severus,' she said softly.

Snape's head turned slightly at the mention of his name. 'I do appreciate what you've done for me and what you have tried to do for me. It means a lot.'

Rachel stopped talking. She still wasn't really sure about what to say. This was the man who was best friends with her mother, the man who raped her because the Dark Lord wanted it to happen, the man who helped teach her Occlumency, she could still only do if she knew it was going to happen but she decided it didn't matter. When would she have to use it, now that the Dark Lord and all his followers are gone?

She actually did appreciate the help he had given her, even when it didn't seem like help at the time. Rachel stepped closer to Snape and he finally turned to look at her. His black eyes searched her green ones vehemently. Rachel didn't know how to feel and she wasn't sure whether it was a good idea to hang around here long.

She took one more step forwards and she touched Snape's pale cheek. He flinched slightly as her warm hand made contact with his cold skin. Before he could say anything Rachel moved swiftly and she kissed 

Snape gently, on the lips. Snape stiffened. It took several seconds but Snape relaxed and he slowly placed his arms around Rachel.

He pulled her closer to him and he entangled his fingers within her hair. Rachel moaned into his mouth. She wrapped her arms around him. He felt the same but he smelt differently. She found it rather pleasant and enchanting.

When the kiss broke and Rachel took a step back, Snape turned his back to her again and Rachel took that as the sign to leave. She nodded her head to no-one and she walked towards the front door. 'I hope this isn't the last time I see you,' Rachel said to him quietly.

Snape said nothing.

Rachel walked to the front door and she opened it slowly, it creaked. She left the house and she set off home. She had things to plan and many things to do. She did feel that she did the right thing. It would stay between her and Snape. She knew it was probably wrong, but she wanted to give him one thing that could be his.


	20. Epilogue

Epilogue – 10 Years Later

Rachel was now almost twenty-eight years old and she was quite happy with how her life had turned out. She and Charlie were married in London when she was twenty-one and they know had three children together.

Rachel couldn't help but laugh as she watched her children play with her brother's children. Harry and Ginny married not long after she did and Ron and Hermione married almost immediately after finishing school.

She was currently at the burrow and everyone had just had lunch. Rachel did wish that Charlie was here. He was still working in Romania and Rachel spent most of her time here, though she did go there sometimes. Charlie promised her that he would retire when he was fifty. Rachel didn't like thinking about it too much. They had fought a bit when it came deciding where to live. Rachel didn't want Charlie to give up something he loved and he didn't want her to be away from her brother and Remus.

So, they bought a house together in London and they kept the apartment that Charlie had in Romania. At first Charlie didn't like the idea of buying a house in London, even though Rachel could easily afford it. Rachel had to keep reminding him that they were now married and what was her is now his also but he had trouble accepting it.

Rachel was happy that Remus and Tonks were still together. They had a son together and named him Teddy, after Tonks' father. Rachel thought it was sweet. And she was happy that he turned out not to be a werewolf. She thought Remus was the proudest father ever to have been born.

'Mum, can we get the brooms out?'

Rachel turned and looked at her eldest son, Gideon Charlie Weasley. He looked just like his father, only with her eyes. 'Why do you want them?' she asked.

'Cause James and I want to fly, chasing is better in the air,' he said impatiently.

Rachel could tell that Gideon was very much like his father. 'You have to ask Uncle Bill and if you're lucky he might watch you.'

'Why can't you?' Gideon asked almost sadly.

'I would but your sister and other little brother need looking after. When dad comes home you can show him all your new moves.'

'Yeah,' Gideon said, suddenly looking excited, his bright green eyes widening in happiness.

She watched as Gideon ran over to Bill, talking to him excitedly and Harry's son James joining them quickly.

It made Rachel think about her Quidditch days. She still had the itch to go back though. After school Hermione started working in the Ministry in the Department of Magical Creatures and Harry and Ron became Aurors, which she expected. Rachel took quite a different road. She began to play professional Quidditch and she still loved it. Though a few months after her second child, she retired. She wanted to be with her kids.

She had joined Puddlemere United as a chaser. Harry told her about their old teammate, Oliver Wood, who was now the full time keeper on the team. Rachel still kept in touch with the team and she visited their training sessions sometimes. Her eldest son Gideon loved going as well. He enjoyed watching them fly around. Rachel wondered if he would be a chaser but he seemed more interested in the snitch.

Both she and Charlie had agreed on Gideon's name. Charlie had told her about Molly's brothers and what had happened to them. Though Rachel did quite like the name Gideon, it was quite unique. When Molly had heard his name the first time, she looked shocked but she fell into tears. Rachel had originally thought they did something wrong, but it turned out that she was pleased.

Rachel shook herself from her thoughts and she looked around for their second child. Rachel stood up and couldn't see her but she then heard laughing and giggling. She walked around one side of the house and saw her daughter, Ariana Lily Weasley, with Hermione's two children, Rose and Hugo and Harry's middle child, Albus.

It was Rachel that picked Ariana's name, though it was Harry's suggestion. They weren't sure about what to pick and Harry told them about Dumbledore's sister. Rachel thought the name was beautiful and Charlie instantly agreed. Ariana looked more her father as well, red hair and blue eyes and both her and Gideon had many freckles.

She watched as all the children played in a circle. But Rachel wasn't quite sure what they were playing. 'Someone's woken up.'

Rachel turned around and saw Hermione holding her youngest son, Daniel Arthur Weasley.

She walked over and Hermione handed him over. 'Sorry,' she said quickly. 'I didn't hear him.'

'It's alright,' Hermione said smiling.

Daniel settled in Rachel's arms quickly and she kissed him on the head. He was still only a baby. When Rachel found out she was pregnant for a third time it surprised her as well as Charlie. They planned on having two children and they both got what they wanted, a boy and a girl. But Daniel wasn't planned but they saw it as a blessing, it was meant to happen, they were meant to have three kids.

Daniel looked more like Rachel, except he had blue eyes. His black hair was dark and his skin palish and he didn't have freckles like his other siblings. He only had some faint ones sprinkled across his nose, and you could only see them if you were close enough. Because Daniel was a surprise, they both weren't sure what to name him. They both searched a few names and Charlie thought of Daniel, Rachel thought it fitted him nicely.

'Come on, let's get you some food,' Rachel said quietly to Daniel.

She took him inside and began to feed him in the small kitchen. Rachel didn't tell Charlie, or anyone else that she had gone to see Snape. She still hasn't seen or heard from him again. She didn't feel any guilt about what happened.

She knew Harry appreciated all the help that Snape had given them. The middle name of his second child was Severus. Rachel hadn't expected it but she thought it quite fitting. When Daniel finished eating Rachel burped him and tickled him a little before cuddling him. He settled in her arms quickly and his little head rested against her chest.

Rachel sighed happily. She was tired and she soon had to take the kids home. She knew Charlie wouldn't be back for another a month and a half. She didn't mind him being away but it sometimes got hard with the kids.

She still greatly loved Charlie and their kids. She wouldn't trade them for anything. She was happy. Things were the way they should be.

* * *

**A/N: **I know it's not the best epilogue but it's the best thing I could think of when I wrote it last night. Hope you enjoyed reading and thanks.


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